Cross my heart and hope you die
by Riser the Silent
Summary: This is my first  serious  fan fiction. These events are taking place a few weeks after the season finale of season 6. Sam and Dean are back to hunting, when they meet a mysterious person who has a talent for making their lives a lot more...exciting.
1. Chapter 1

Sam and Dean were on the road, sitting silently and listening to the wheels of the Impala on the asphalt. Dean kept his hands on the driving-wheel, but his mind was far away. Cas was lost to them. Taking in all those souls from Purgatory had driven him insane. He had declared himself the new God and demanded they'd kneel and worship him.

He still couldn't believe it now. Cas, straight-faced-baby-in-a-trench-coat Cas, had turned into a delusional angel with too much power. He hadn't fooled them of course; there was no way he was the new God. He was too prideful for that. Where had they gone wrong, Dean asked himself. How could they have avoided this? He had considered Cas family. Part of the crew. Him, Bobby, Sam and Cas. Dean felt for his angel friend – yes, he still considered him a friend somewhat. Why hadn't Cas come to them? They could have helped him, or they would have died trying.

Sam watched his big brother reasoning with himself. He sighed. He too had trouble accepting what had happened. Cas, going bad. Or insane. He didn't know which was worse. When Cas had demanded worship, they had refused. For a second, Sam had thought Cas would kill them, the anger in his eyes had flamed like holy fire. But he had disappeared from their midst. Just like that. Why had he done that? Why hadn't he smitten them? With all the souls from Purgatory he could have blasted them and the entire earth into oblivion.

Damn that Crowley for tricking Cas into believing he was righteous. He had righteous in a way, trying to stop Raphael to become the new sheriff in Heaven and beginning the Apocalypse all over again. But somewhere along the way, Cas –driven by despair and fearing the oncoming onslaught – had lost sight of his objective. He had searched not only for a way to stop the Archangel. He had tried to best him; to wrestle the title of God from his hands. And now he thought he was just that. God. Sam sighed again and stretched.

They drove into a small town and parked near a bar. "Let's get a drink," Dean said as he got out of the car. Sam slammed the car door shut and walked into the bar, behind his brother. They ordered the cheapest whiskey and sat down at a small table. Neither of them spoke, each content to leave the other sorting out his thoughts. Dean started to get annoyed, not because of the silence, but because of something disturbing the silence.

Ticking. Someone was ticking against a glass with their nails. It seemed to follow a preset rhythm that annoyed the crap out of him. "Sam." His younger brother looked up as he said: "Yeah?" "Do you hear that ticking? It's starting to piss me off."Sam cocked his head as he listened. He heard it too. But he heard more than his brother. This wasn't random ticking. This was Morse code. "Dean, it's Morse." Dean looked generally surprised. "How do you even know that? Dad never taught us Morse." Sam smirked. "I taught it to myself." Dean shook his head. "You are such a nerd."

Sam grabbed one of the many napkins lying around and fished a pen out of his pocket. He started to write down the letters he heard. E…S…T…E…R. _Ester?_ He racked his brain. Did he know an Ester? That wasn't even the appropriate spelling for the name! Then he listened again. He had left out a part. The ticking started again. W….I…N…C…H…E…S…T…E…R. Winchester! He slowly turned the napkin so Dean could see what he had written.

Dean furrowed his brow. Carefully he looked around the bar, trying to find the person calling out to them. He saw Sam doing the same, and focused once more on his surroundings. His eye fell on a pretty blonde chick. He was watching her from behind. As she turned around, he looked away quickly. _That's not a chick! Dude, not cool!_ He looked on. "Dean," Sam whispered, "over there." He glanced at the direction Sam was stealthily pointing to with his head.

A girl was sitting across him at the bar, holding a glass of beer. She seemed to be only a few years younger than them. And she had the most captivating eyes he'd ever seen. Lush green eyes, slanted and looking right at him. Her wavy black hair was tied in a messy ponytail, her bangs framing her face. She was wearing a pair of jeans, red sneakers and a form fitting red baseball jacket. She tilted her head slightly, as to beckon him. Then she got up and walked out the door. In a flash, Dean saw the dagger tucked behind her belt, before her jacket obscured it.

Sam had seen it too. "Do we follow her?" he asked. Sam looked thoughtful, but stood up anyways. Dean followed him out. They walked around the corner, where the girl was leaning against the wall, waiting for them. "Sam and Dean Winchester." It wasn't a question. She was stating a fact. Dean smirked. "That's us. I'm Dean and this giant here is Sammie." The girl seemed to be taken aback by this revelation. "You're Dean? Huh." "What huh?" Sam asked.

A crooked smile appeared on the girl's face as she slowly shook her head. "Nothing. I've got something for you." She reached inside her jacket. Before she had the chance to draw her hand back, Dean had grabbed his gun and Sam slammed her into the wall. A flicker of annoyance flew over her face but was gone in a second. "I'm not here to hurt you guys. I have better things to do. Just take it." She slowly moved her arm and pulled out a journal.

Sam accepted it and gave her a quick and embarrassed smile. Dean put his gun away. Sam looked through the journal, while Dean kept an eye on the girl. "So, how did you know who we were?" he asked. She shrugged. "I knew your dad. He was a friend of the family, so to speak." Dean frowned. "You're not a hunter then? Since you have a family." The crooked smile found a way on her face again. "Not that kind of family."

"Dean, look." Sam showed him an old picture. Dean took it and looked at it for a long time. It was his dad. He had been standing next to Bobby when the picture was taken, Rufus sitting on a chair behind them and a Native American man with his long hair in a ponytail listening to whatever they were saying. Dean looked up and asked: "Who's the Native American man?"

"He-who-kills-all-evil," the girl answered. A silence fell. _Is she joking?_ "That's his Indian name," she added matter-of-factly. "I just called him The General." Sam frowned. "Is he your …father?" he asked, giving himself a mental face palm. Obviously the girl wasn't related to The General. He was Native American, she was of Asian descent. "He's…The General. That's pretty much it. Anyways, after he died the journal was supposed to go to John. I guess it's yours now."

Sam wanted to ask her more, when they were rudely disturbed by a thug-looking man and his lackeys. They walked up to them, confident with guns at the ready. Dean saw the girl roll with her eyes before smiling and saying: "Franky! Long time no see." The man named Franky sniffed and pointed his gun at her. "I've been hearing some stuff," he said. Dean watched the girl check all available exit points.

"Well, I guess that hearing problem of yours is fixed then. Good for you, Franky." Franky smiled. "Everything's always a joke to you, isn't it? But not this. We had a deal, you and I. And now I hear you've been selling those cars to Davey. Davey? You go to Davey but not to me?" The girl shrugged. "Davey pays more and faster. I needed the money. Sorry Franky, I'll bring you some pretty ones next time. But I need to go. I have to be back before dinner." Franky gestured his lackeys closer.

Sam was edging closer to Dean and Dean had half a mind to draw his gun. Whatever was happening, it wasn't pretty. And they were caught in the middle of it. "There won't be a next time. You betrayed my trust." The girl made a face which was supposed to look like he had hurt her feelings. "I didn't do it because I wanted to, you know? I was forced!" Franky frowned. "Forced? You? You, little hellcat, can't be forced to do anything."

"I was! By these guys," the girl said as she pointed at Sam and Dean. _What?_ Sam made a sound like a yelp and Dean's jaw dropped. The lackeys turned their attention at them. "No, you've got it all wrong," Sam began. The girl hooked her fingers behind Dean's belt, showing off what he was packing. "He has a gun." Before they knew it, bullets were flying all over the place. Sam and Dean jumped for cover. The girl was hiding behind a car and her eyes caught Sam's. She shrugged and made an apologetic gesture. Then she was gone.

Dean pulled his own gun, but before he had to use it, the shooting stopped. The men shouted some obscenities and warned them to stay away, and then they walked off. The brothers waited for a while, before getting up. "What the hell was that?" Sam asked out loud, "that girl totally set us up!" "SON OF A BITCH!" Dean screamed. He wasn't going to let her get away with this. He'd almost been killed!

They walked back into the bar, looking for the bartender. They wanted some information. And they wanted it bad. The bartender, an elderly lady with a pleasant face, moved closer to them to ask them what they were having. "Whiskey," Dean said. He needed a drink. When they got their glasses, Sam got friendly with the bartender. "Don't mind me asking, but who was the girl who was sitting here before? The Asian girl with the prominent green eyes?"

"Ah, that would be Tyler. Good kid she turned out to be, considering," the bartender said. The brothers frowned. "Considering?" The bartender looked around, to see if there were people eavesdropping. Then she leaned in close, looking at the guys as if they were conspirators. "Well, let me tell you, it wasn't pretty when The General raced in here all those years ago, calling for the doctor." Now Sam's curiosity was peaked.

The bartender seemed to take their silence as a sign to go in. "I guess she was in a fire, poor little thing. Horribly burned she was. Not just her skin, but her mind too. Even as her wounds healed, she didn't speak for two years. She just looked at you, with those unsettling eyes. She always seemed to know what was happening, even though she said nothing."

"Gave us a whole lot of trouble too. Boy, did she like mischief. I don't know how The General kept her in line. But he did. And she grew up to be such a beautiful young woman. So wise for her age. She had to grow up too fast, I suppose. And ever since The General died…-" She seemed to realize she was gossiping to two strangers about one of her own. "Who did you say you were again?"

"Our father was a friend of The General," Dean said. He wasn't lying…completely. He guessed his father and this General guy had been friends. "Could you give us her address?" The bartender frowned and thought for a second. Sam and Dean put on their best smiles, trying to look as straight arrow-ish as they could. Hopefully they looked like the boy next door type. The one you take home to meet your mother…or daughter.

The bartender scribbled the address on a napkin. "Tell Tyler Betty said hi. And that she owes me the money for the beer." The brothers smiled. It was payback time.


	2. Chapter 2

Sam got behind the wheel as Dean sat next to him in the Impala. They had gotten the address from the nice bartender and were about to pay a little visit to that girl, Tyler. Dean was muttering to himself about how he was going to pay her back big time. Sam smiled and started the car. They blasted AC/DC as they drove toward their destination.

The house looked quite ordinary, beside the fact it stood in the middle of nowhere. The lights were out and the wooden fence seemed so fragile the smallest gust of wind would tear it down. There was a big rusty pickup truck parked next to the only tree on the property. The whole place had a mucky feel. Sam and Dean looked at each other before getting out the Impala.

Sam grabbed the shotgun from the trunk and Dean took out his gun. They weren't planning on hurting her, but it was never bad to be prepared. They slowly approached the house, but no one seemed to be home. They stopped at the door and looked at each other, before trying it. It was locked. Dean took out his tools and picked the lock, while Sam checked if someone was watching.

The door slid open and Dean took up his gun again. They went in, trying to distribute their weight as best they could, hoping to prevent the wooden floor from cracking. The house was dark and silent. Sam frowned. Too silent. He was about to whisper to his brother when the lights were switched on. The light seared their eyes and they were forced to shut them.

When they opened them again, they were looking down the barrels of six guns. Tyler was standing on the stairs, leaning on the railing, handling a small gun inlaid with gold. And around her were six kids from all ages. A Caucasian toddler holding a shotgun, two preteen Asian boys with twin guns, a black teenage girl with a stun gun and a Native American guy who seemed close to Tyler's age with an actual machine gun. They all seemed to know exactly what they were doing.

"You know, it's considered rude in some countries to drop by so close to dinner time," Tyler said smirking. Sam and Dean lowered their weapons, unsure of what to do. "These yours?" Dean asked. "Yep, that's me. Popping out kids since 1986." She gestured to the others to put away their weapons. "So, what's for dinner?" Sam asked innocently. Tyler looked at the Native American guy next to her, who shrugged in response. "I have no idea."

Before they knew it, the brothers were seated at the dinner table, while the kids went back to playing. The Native American guy and the black girl stayed downstairs with Tyler, who grabbed a chair, reversed it and sat down. "Guys, these are Sam and Dean Winchester," she said. "Sam, Dean…this is Jet. And this pain in the ass right here is Avalon." The girl snorted. "So, which one is Dean?" she asked. Tyler nudged her head towards Dean. "Huh."

"What's with the huh?" Dean asked, getting annoyed. "Nothing," Avalon replied. The three young boys ran through the room. Something silver shot past Sam, lodging itself in the wall behind him. It was a dagger. Jet grabbed the oldest boy by the collar, stopping him in his tracks. "Dante, what did we tell you about this?" The other two boys stopped running around and looked at the exchange. "Um…no running with daggers?"

Sam grinned. Jet hauled the boy off his feet and said: "No touching blades until you're a full-fledged hunter. Now put it back where you found it." The boy yanked the dagger out of the wall and went upstairs. "The same goes for you Ivan, Silver. No touching hunter stuff, beside the guns," Tyler said. The boys nodded gravely. "Good. Now go ahead and play." This brought smiles upon their faces again and they ran away.

Jet walked to the refrigerator and grabbed two beers, handing them to Sam and Dean. "Weren't you supposed to be having dinner or something?" Dean asked as he sipped his beer. "Keanah is late," Avalon replied. They heard the front door swing shut and a blond haired beauty came walking in, carrying three pizza boxes. "If it isn't our exotic dancer!" Tyler called out. Keanah smiled and said: "Better a dancer than a thief." "Ouch."

Jet called the boys down, while Tyler and Avalon looked through the pizza boxes. Keanah was eyeing the brothers. "Sam and Dean Winchester huh?" "That's us," Sam said. Keanah turned to Tyler and asked: "Which one is Dean?" Tyler didn't even look up or pause. "The short one." Dean glared at her. Sure, he wasn't a giant like Sam, but short? That was a bit too much. Keanah looked at Dean and smiled seductively.

"So you're the one we shouldn't let into our pants? Figures." Dean almost spat out his mouthful of beer. "Excuse me?" Avalon sat down next to him. "Your father told Keanah and Tyler not to let you into their pants. He called you a womanizer." Dean was shocked. His father said that about him? Well, it was the truth, but still! Sam burst out laughing. "So, is the other one fair game then, Tyler?" Keanah asked.

Tyler grabbed one of the pizza boxes and walked up the stairs as she said: "Knock yourself out. Just…make sure you leave him in one piece. I'm not cleaning up your mess again." Sam blushed and found something very interesting on his shoe. "Where are you going?" Jet asked. "My room. Why?" Jet frowned. "With an entire pizza?"

"The General gave me Alpha status. If you don't like it, you know where you can take your complaints." With these words, she walked upstairs. Jet shook his head and started to divide the pizzas. "Alpha status?" Sam asked. "Ah yes. The General made her leader of the pack before he died. Never had a chance to revoke it. She gets first dibs," Keanah said. "She deserves it though. She sacrificed a lot for us," Avalon mused.

They all sat down to eat, the kids talking about homework and school trips, the others talking about college, university, work and hunting. The brothers began to feel pretty comfortable here. "You guys can stay here if you want. Or are you just passing through?" Jet asked. Dean thought about that for a moment. "I guess we'll stay a while. It's not often we meet a family of hunters." Little Silver was making a mess of himself and Avalon was trying to clean him up, to no avail.

"Well, we're not all hunters. Not yet. It's usually Tyler on her own or with Jet. Keanah is the second oldest, but she doesn't hunt. University is taking up all her time," Avalon said. "Tyler doesn't go to school?" Sam asked. A silence fell. Jet coughed and said: "She dropped out of high school when she was sixteen. That's when The General died. Since then, she's been providing for us and hunting occasionally. We all try to pitch in, but there's only so much you can earn as an exotic dancer, mechanic or shop assistant."

Sam nodded. To live on your own, working and studying was hard enough. But to have to care of six others beside that. It was nigh impossible. "Times must have been hard on her. On all of you." Keanah nodded. "I often think it's even crueler that she has to pay for all university, college and school tuition. Since she never got to go. She would have aced university." After that remark, they all fell silent. Dean tried to change to subject.

"So, how'd The General find you guys?" Ivan looked at him with somber eyes and replied: "We are special." Dean frowned. "Special?" Dante nodded. "I can read minds." The brothers were taken aback by this comment._ Is he serious? _"Read minds?" Keanah explained. "All of us lost our families to supernatural stuff. And some of us have…abilities. Like Dante can read minds. Avalon can smell a vampire from a mile away. And Tyler…well…she can sense the supernatural."

Sam and Dean looked at each other. _Sense the supernatural?_ "That's a very handy ability for a hunter." Jet gulped down his beer. "It is. Just like the fact she doesn't sleep." Dean took in a sharp breath. "She doesn't sleep?" Ivan shook his head. "She naps. But she never sleeps. The General said it was because of the nightmares."

The Winchesters looked towards the stairs. They had gone looking for Tyler, but they had found this peculiar family of special children and hunters. Nothing was as it seemed.


	3. Chapter 3

Since they were staying over, Dean was given Tyler's room. And Sam was staying in Keanah's room, who had actually suggested they share the room, before smiling innocently and bunking down with her younger sister Avalon. "So where will you sleep?" Dean had asked Tyler. She'd given him a strange look and replied: "I don't sleep."

Now Dean was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling on which was painted a devil's trap. Something had woken him. He didn't know what. He got up and made his way to the door. He slowly opened it and stole a glance at the hallway. Nothing moved. This reassured him a bit and he went back to bed.

Tyler came out of the shadows near the door. She'd almost woken Dean up, but was sure to be more careful this time. She had forgotten to get something from her room, before he had 'moved in'. Silently, she sneaked past his sleeping form, opened her top drawer and snatched the small golden studs. Quietly she made her way back to the hallway.

She'd pierced her left ear when she was sixteen and bought two golden studs. One in remembrance of her father and the other in remembrance of her mother. Though she had no clear memories of them or any other adults from her previous life, she felt she had to honor them. They had been the ones to bring her to the earth. And they had been the ones giving their lives so she could live.

Tyler shook her head, to clear her mind of all things negative. She grabbed her baseball jacket and the machine gun, and went outside. She swung over the fence and positioned herself comfortably on one of the posts. Like always, Tyler kept watch. She'd started at age fourteen when she found out she could go on for weeks, on only two hours of napping once in a while. The General hadn't acquired the sleeping pills for her back then. And since, she only had a small stash left; she had only used them sporadically. Since she turned 25, she hadn't used them at all.

The night was silent, only disturbed by rustles of the leaves and grass. Nocturnal animals scurried past her. When Sam had asked her if The General was her father, it had felt like a slap in the face. Truth is, she had wanted to give him an affirmative answer. She's had a fully functioning father-daughter relationship with The General – beside the fact that he couldn't stress the fact they were a pack, not a family. A pack of highly trained soldiers. Tyler smiled unconsciously. Kind of like Dark Angel.

Tyler had played along, never calling him father or dad or pa. And he had never referred to any of them as his sons or daughters. She had known though. They'd all known. And once, he had slipped up. The day he died, the day he stepped upon that mine she should have known would be there, he had told her to take care of her brothers and sisters. A cruel thing to say, that was. Cruel it had been as well, telling her to make a run for it.

If he hadn't ordered her to do so, she would have stayed. She might have found a way around the mine. She might have disabled it. But both of them knew that chance was small. And if she had died there, with him, she would have left Keanah to take care of the rest. She had no doubt Keanah could have done it; she was only two years younger than Tyler.

And she would have done a better job too. Tyler had carried on the way The General had raised them; like soldiers. Like warriors. Keanah would have raised them like a family. "Well, damaged goods like me wouldn't able to raise a good family anyway. Too messed up," Tyler thought out loud. A chill suddenly spread and she sat up, alert once again.

She had no idea what it was, but it was supernatural alright. And powerful. Her eyes darted to all her checkpoints before focusing on the house. She frowned. Was it especially clear tonight or were her eyes getting better at adjusting to the dark. For a moment there, she thought she could actually see inside her bedroom clearly.

Tyler pushed that thought away. It'd be impossible for her to see that far. Then she felt it. Whatever supernatural force or creature it was, it was making its way towards her. It came to her from behind. Tyler cursed under her breath, but didn't move. She gave nothing away. To anyone it would seem she was focusing on the house, with all her might. The rounds in her machine gun were filled with salt and formed of silver, she had made it herself.

But salt didn't kill, it just stopped supernatural stuff. And silver only worked on some creatures. She silently berated herself for not going outside with more weapons. And then it was upon her, clawing in her side. She turned with speed and fired off some rounds into whatever it was. Tyler was thrown against the tree, all the air forced out of her lungs.

It was a man. Or something pretending to be a man. He was stocky and short, looking nothing like the kind of man who could've thrown her like that. Tyler got up. A vampire? Werewolf? Shape shifter? She cursed again, out loud this time. Not a werewolf or shape shifter. The silver bullets would have killed it. He came at her, his speed too big for his stature.

Tyler tried to lunge to the right, but her side wouldn't cooperate. She was losing too much blood. The pain she didn't even acknowledge. For some reason, pain didn't affect her as much as it did regular people. She eyed her machine gun, lying on her left. The man read her intentions and grabbed her by the throat. Slamming her into the tree and throttling her.

Then she saw, and she knew. Demon. His eyes were as black as night, and would've been impossible for her to see if he hadn't been so damn pale. Suddenly shots were fired and the demon veered away. Tyler slid to the ground as she watched Sam and Dean fire round after round into the demon. Of course, this didn't actually help. They were using regular guns.

The demon spoke then, as he said: "Winchesters, I've been looking for you." A silence fell. The demon laughed eerily. "My master wants you dead. His angel friend betrayed him, so the deal not to touch you is off." _Angel friend?_ Tyler had no idea what he was talking about. Sam and Dean did. _Cas._ Sam felt anger shoot through him. Crowley. Crowley had sent his demon lackeys after them.

Dean reached for the colt, only to realize it was still in the house. He'd left it on Tyler's nightstand. "Son of a bitch." Sam struggled with the demon trying to knife him while Dean tried to remember the Latin spell to exorcise the bastard. They had no time to interrogate him, Sam was slowly losing ground and Tyler was sitting in front of the tree, bleeding away.

Then he remembered the spell, and began the incantation, when Tyler was suddenly beside the demon. She had her dagger in her hand. What was she doing? Demons couldn't be killed with a normal blade. Tyler stabbed the demon at the back of the neck viciously. The demon screamed. And died.

Sam and Dean looked at Tyler, who seemed just as surprised as them. She looked at the dagger, then looked at them and sagged to the ground. They ran to her. Tyler was okay, her eyes a little unfocussed, but alright. They needed to stop the bleeding though. "I'm fine," she said, as she slowly pushed herself from the ground. On unsteady legs, she walked back to the house, Sam and Dean following suit.


	4. Chapter 4

They entered the house. Dean now had to support Tyler, who was constantly in and out of consciousness. He attempted to sit her down, but her eyes snapped open and she stumbled to the kitchen. She rummaged into the drawers, stopping every few times to get her body to do what her mind told it to do.

She found thread and a needle and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. Sam and Dean immediately understood what she was going to do. The water was to replenish her blood and the tread and needle were to close her wound. "Here, let me do it," Sam said as she flopped down on one of the chairs.

"It's alright, I can handle it," Tyler protested, but conceded as she saw how much her hand shook with concentration. She wouldn't be able to sow her wound shut in the state she was in. Sam took the tread and needle from her and began to sow the wound shut while Tyler drank her water. Dean frowned at how well she was taking it, almost like she didn't actually feel the pain and asked her: "Don't you want something stronger? I have a couple of beers in the car."

Tyler stopped drinking for a second. "I'm used to this, but a cold beer sounds nice all the same." Dean walked out to get the beers. Sam finished up and cut the thread. "There. All done." Tyler nodded her thanks as Sam sat down on a chair opposite her. Together they waited for Dean to come back. When he did, he handed both of them a beer and they all took a silent swig.

"So, what was all that about an angel? You're not going to tell me they really exist," Tyler said. The Winchesters looked at each other and shrugged. They'd gotten her involved already, so they might as well tell her. "They do exist. But, if you want to hear the story, you'll have to sit tight. It's a long story and you need to hear it from the beginning," Dean said.

Tyler shifted and winced. "I'm not going anywhere." Sam took a deep breath and began telling her all about their lives, starting from the day their mother had died and their father became obsessed with hunting. Tyler listened silently, only interrupting the story to ask a question now and again as the two brothers told their story. When they finished, they looked at her, waiting for her to speak.

It took her a while to gather her thoughts. "So this Cas- I mean Castiel – he's God now?" Sam spoke. "No. I doubt God would be so full of himself. Cas is still an angel, a powerful one though. He smoked an archangel. That's no small feat." Tyler chewed on her bottom lip.

"What are you going to do? Try to save him from himself?" This question hit them hard. Especially Dean. Truth be told, he wanted to do that with all his heart. Cas was family now, like Bobby. And the Winchesters would go through Hell and back for their family. But he couldn't. Because he didn't know how to save him.

Sam recognized his brother's brooding mood and answered for him. "We keep on hunting. Until we find a solution to the problem." Tyler nodded thoughtfully. Then she stood up. "Well, I'm beat. So, I suggest we all try to get some shut-eye." Sam and Dean got up as well. "I thought you didn't sleep?" The left corner of Tyler's mouth lifted, forming a crooked smile.

"Only when I'm hurt." They all went upstairs, Sam going to Keanah's room and Dean going to Tyler's. Tyler herself made her way to Jet's room. "See you Winchesters tomorrow."


	5. Chapter 5

Dean yawned and stretched as he woke slowly. The sunlight penetrated the thin curtains of Tyler's room. He sat up and took a deep breath. The house was practically silent, except for the muted whispers coming from downstairs. Jet and Tyler, if he judged the voices right. He got up and made the bed. He opened the door in the corner – he had found the bathroom by accident yesterday – and walked in. He had dreamed of Cas and betrayal.

He sighed and turned on the shower as he undressed. The warm water running down his body caused him to grow more relaxed. He forced Cas from his mind. He couldn't do anything for his friend at this moment. But there was something else he and Sam could do. They could hunt the demons in town. There had to be more than one demon sent by Crowley. He might hate Crowley and all he stands for, but the master of Hell knew his business.

There was no way Crowley would send one meager demon after them. He thought about last night. Tyler had been really hurt. Because of them. That was how life worked for the Winchesters. People always got hurt because of them. He sighed again and turned off the water. In a flash he remembered how Tyler had killed that demon. How had she done that? Was there a spell on the blade she had used? He knew she herself had no idea how she'd done it. That much was clear.

Dean got dressed and walked out into the hall. He opened the door to Keanah's room and checked on Sam. Sam was asleep. _Good. Ever since the wall between him and his memories broke, he sleeps fitfully_. Dean went downstairs. Jet and Tyler had their backs to him as they sat on the couch, playing videogames. Jet's head rested on her shoulder and they were slinging verbal abuse each other's way in soft voices. Dean smiled inwardly.

Maybe Ben would've been like that - if he and Lisa had gotten a child. Ben would've loved a sibling. A stab of pain forced him out of his fantasy. That chapter was gone now. Ben and Lisa had no memory of him. No supernatural creature or force would go after them now. It didn't matter it felt like his heart had been ripped out. They were safe. And his only chance at a normal life was gone. Dean clenched his jaw while at the same time, Jet chose that moment to turn around.

"Hey Dean. Up already?" Tyler turned as well, before turning back and sneakily beating Jet's fighting character. Jet got distracted by the noise and turned back. "Dude, not fair." Tyler stood up, that familiar crooked smile on her face again and said: "Life isn't fair." She walked straight, like there wasn't anything wrong with her. Dean walked with her to the kitchen.

"How's that wound?" he asked softly, unsure if she had told Jet about what happened. She lifted her shirt a little, as she opened the fridge. He glanced at her side. The wound was healing fast. Way too fast. He looked up again, one eyebrow raised. "I heal quickly," Tyler said, explaining nothing further. "Cereal?" Dean nodded and sat down at the table. Jet joined them as soon as he heard Tyler putting down the bowls.

Sam was halfway through getting dressed when the door swung open and Keanah walked in. "Oh, Sam! I totally forgot you were in here!" she said. But she was so obviously checking his naked upper body out, Sam grinned. "Yeah, right." Keanah made her way downstairs quickly, but not without checking him out one more time. Sam shook his head and smiled. _She really what she wants_. He put on his shirt and followed her down.

He had called Bobby yesterday, just before he went to bed. Bobby hadn't heard from or about Cas or Crowley. But he too had been visited by a demon. Exorcised it of course. Good old Bobby. Sam was glad the old man hadn't been too shaken by Castiel's betrayal. But then, Bobby never was as close as they were to Cas. As Dean was. Sam watched his brother roughhousing with the younger boys. Dean would've made a good father. If only he could've had the chance.

"Good morning everyone," he said as he sat down next to Avalon. She pushed a bowl of cereal his way. He accepted it with a nod. Keanah was looking at him, fiercely. Like she wanted to eat him. "So, Sam. Do you work out? Because that's one helluva six pack," she said, seductively. Jet made a vomiting sound and Tyler dropped her spoon in her unfinished cereal with a face dripping of annoyance and disgust.

"Seriously Keanah? You want to make your move on Sam while we're eating?" Avalon berated her older sister. Dean, drawn by the nature of the conversation, sat back down at the table, wiggling his eyebrows at his younger brother. Keanah batted her eyelashes innocently and said: "What? I'm just making conversation?" Tyler got up and threw away her cereal. "Don't you have a boyfriend somewhere on campus?"

"Don't hate the player, hate the game, Ty." Tyler rolled her eyes. "Go. Get. Don't you guys have school or something?" The others got up and made ready to go to school. Jet went over to Tyler, and waited for the others to walk to the pickup truck. "Need me to stay home?" he asked, looking pointedly at her side. She shook her head.

"Nah. You'll make the popular girls wonder where their favorite heartthrob disappeared to." Jet grinned, kissed her on top of her head and went out. Sam raised an eyebrow. "Awfully affectionate isn't he?" Tyler shrugged. "He lost his dad and older sister to demons. I guess I remind him of her." Sam and Dean nodded in understanding.

Tyler grabbed a chair, reversed it and sat down. "So, I've been thinking. It's probably safe to say that demon wasn't the only in town." "Yeah, I thought the same thing," Dean said. "Let's go hunting then." Sam frowned in surprise. "You want to come with? But what about your wound?" Tyler smiled. "What wound?" Dean stood up.

"You sure about this?" he asked her. Tyler nodded. "Then I say: let's go." He walked out, followed suit by Sam and Tyler. He opened the trunk of the Impala, the weaponry causing Tyler to whistle. "Nice."


	6. Chapter 6

Dean drove the Impala into the small town, Sam and Tyler in the back. She had brought a game console and was teaching his younger brother how the game worked. Sam was concentrating hard on the controls as she explained, his brow furrowing. Dean watched them through his rearview mirror and smiled inwardly.

He hadn't seen Sam so relaxed in over a month. Funny, Tyler seemed to have that effect on both of them. He couldn't remember a time where he had been so at ease. Not even when they'd been but little boys – they were always travelling with their father, always moving around. Not a place to call home since their house in Lawrence burned down, taking their mother from them.

Tyler brought them a valuable thing - a sense of normality. And yet she also brought excitement and surprise to their lives. The last thing they'd expected when they broke into her house was to find a fellow hunter taking care of a big family, working odd jobs – legal or otherwise – and yet have such a laid-back attitude towards life.

They'd only met her two days ago and yet he felt like he'd known her for years. Despite her badass demeanor, she was in general very approachable and likeable. Unless she didn't like you, of course. Dean could image her kicking someone's ass if that person even looked at her in a way she didn't fancy. He parked the Impala and got out, followed suit by Tyler and Sam.

_Now, where to start looking? _Sam chewed on the inside of his cheek. This wasn't like a regular case. There were no omens, no accidents that looked too much like murder, no urban legends to research. They already knew what they were after, but how would they find them? He popped the trunk. The guys grabbed their favorite playthings and holy water.

Dean handed the Colt to Sam, who hooked it behind his belt. Tyler has her own gun and dagger, hidden behind her baseball jacket. "So, where do you want to start looking?" she asked. Sam and Dean looked around. "I have no clue. Don't you sense anything?" Sam asked. Tyler shot him an amused glance before replying: "it's not an exact science, dude. I can't just turn it on and off." She began to walk towards the shops.

"Besides, I usually go with my gut feeling anyway." Sam grinned and followed her, nudging Dean. They walked past many houses and stores, but they got nothing. Sam even put the IMF to work, but it didn't react. Then they saw something they didn't expect. "Maybe, we should check this out," Dean said. Sam was eagerly nodding. Tyler looked from the guys to the building and back, rolling her eyes.

"Seriously?" she said, one eyebrow raised. Dean licked his lips as Sam said: "Yeah. I'm getting a gut feeling right now." They went in quickly, leaving Tyler on the street, forgotten. "You're getting a feeling, alright."

Sparsely clothed girls lead the guys to a table close to the dancing redhead in the corner. _A strip club, in this unexcited town? It's like finding a pearl in a sea of crap!_ Sam shifted in his chair, watching a pretty brunette replace the redhead. He glanced at his brother who was completely into her interpretive dance. He turned his focus back to the girl. Man, she was really good! Those swaying hips kept him enchanted.

A blond girl came over to ask what they wanted to drink. "What can I get you gentlemen?" Dean forced his attention away from the dancing girl and gave her their order. He watched her leave and as he turned back, he was met with such a sight that he almost fell out of his chair. Tyler. She was seated next to him, her nose in a book.

"Tyler!" he exclaimed, startling Sam and causing Tyler to look up from her book. "What?" she said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "How long have you been sitting here?" "I've been here the entire time." Sweat started trickling down Sam's neck. She had seen them staring at these strippers?

Tyler smirked. "Oh yeah. I saw you guys drooling over these girls. Sad, really." Dean made a protesting sound, but was cut off by Tyler getting up. "So, satisfied your _gut_ feeling?" she asked. "Can we go back to hunting then please?" The guys didn't know how fast they had to get off their chairs and back onto the street. _Awkward!_

Once back outside, they carried on walking in silence. None of them knew how to proceed. How to find a demon that doesn't want to be found? A burly man walked into Tyler and told her to watch it as she stumbled. Sam screamed something back at the man, but Tyler didn't hear what he said. She was staring at the man, almost squinting. "Dean! That's him! He's messing up my senses, he's definitely supernatural!"


	7. Chapter 7

Dean wasted no more time and hooked his finger behind his belt, grabbing for his gun. But before he could pull it out, Tyler restrained him. "What are you doing? You can't just shoot a gun in the middle of the street!" She was right. That would be a bad idea. He relaxed, causing Tyler to let go of his hand and looked at his younger brother.

This was going to turn into either a stalking session or a stake-out. Sam hoped it would be the first, because he wasn't in the mood to spend the entire day in the car. They started walking, carefully so the burly man didn't notice their stalking, their hands never far from their weapons. He didn't seem to suspect anything.

It was going well. Which meant something would go wrong. And soon. Sam had no idea why he thought that, but he just did. And he turned out to be right. Dark clouds packed together, the sky turning grey and depressing. "Well, that isn't good. It's probably going to-" Tyler was cut off as it started raining really hard, soaking them instantly. "Rain…" she added after a pause.

The rain was definitely not natural; all three of them sensed that. _Great._ They continued stalking the man, who seemed in no hurry and oblivious to the rain. Sam suddenly slipped on a half-eaten bagel someone had just thrown away. This distracted Tyler and Dean, who both moved forward to help him. He had regained his balance again, but the damage was already done. The supernatural guy was gone.

Dean sighed and was willing to give up for the day, Tyler looked this way and that and Sam was trying to scrape the remains of the bagel off his shoe. "Maybe we should just give up," Dean started. "No, we are so close. Let's just continue," Sam replied. Dean sneezed before he asked: "And how are you planning to do that?"

"Would you guys shut up?" Tyler said, irritably. They both turned to her, to tell her to shut up herself, but they stopped. She was leaning against a street lantern, her eyes closed. "What are you-" "Shhh!" Tyler took a deep breath and focused, not on her surroundings but on her supernatural senses within. They tingled faintly. She knew she would be able to find the burly guy again, if only she could 'turn it back on'.

Sam and Dean looked at each other and frowned. A silence fell between them. For a while, not one of them moved, only to let other people pass. Slowly, the day passed and still nothing happened. Sam checked his watch. It was getting late. Dean was watching Tyler. She was so still, she almost looked like a statue or a painting. Her chest was rising, the only thing telling him she was alive.

Her long black hair was clinging to her back, her hands folded across her breasts creating what he'd like to call a 'thinking pose'. Her lips were full and her figure was slim, athletic. Her legs, wrapped in dark jeans, were long. Her buttocks firm and well shaped, her- _Wait, why is my mind wandering?_ Dean shook himself. At that exact time, Tyler shuddered as if she just awoke and her eyes shot open.

She turned to the guys, smiled and said: "I found him." The brothers grinned. "Lead the way." Tyler started running, and the guys followed. It was hard to keep up with her, Sam thought. Maybe it was their age, but she seemed to outrun them pretty easily. She looked back, not breaking her stride. "Come on, you guys. You're like a bunch of slugs!"

Now their pride was wounded. They had no choice to speed up; she just implied they couldn't keep up! Sam, Dean and Tyler raced each other, forgetting the burly supernatural guy for a while. She had that effect on them. Tyler ran around the corner, coming to an abrupt halt. Sam and Dean avoided slamming into her just in time. They all looked up.

A house that had been put up for sale. Which meant it was empty. Which meant all kinds of nasty things could lurk in there. "He's in there?" Dean asked. Tyler nodded. "No use in waiting, let's go." Three pairs of hands went to the concealed weapons they'd brought, three pairs of eyes focusing on the house in front of them. It was time to get some answers.


	8. Chapter 8

Sam walked before the others, approaching the house silently and slowly. They couldn't afford to alert the demons just yet. He crouched beside one of the windows and saw the other two duck as well. He waited for his heart to start beating regularly again; it had quickened its pace noticeably. He looked at Dean and Tyler, who signaled they were ready to go whenever he gave the word. Sam took a deep breath, placed his finger on the trigger of his gun and hopped up.

Glass broke, splinters prickling his face, and his throat closed. He opened his eyes, but only had a moment to see the hand enclosed around his throat before he was pulled through the glass. "Sam!" he heard his brother scream. He hit the ground hard, tasting blood. He had bitten his lip as he came into contact with the ground.

His vision was hazy; he could only see shades moving around. He recognized Dean's figure and heard shots fired. He struggled to get up when a hand grabbed his shirt. He tried to get away, but the shade was too strong. "Sam, Sam it's me!"

Sam looked up and as his vision cleared he recognized Tyler. He shook his head to clear it. "You alright?" He nodded and got up. And was thrown into a massive brawl. There were demons everywhere. They were in over their heads.

Tyler ducked behind a blow, hooked her foot behind a chair to lift it and used it to bludgeon the demon in front of her. He went down, but surged right back up. _Of course, they don't die that easily._ She leaped to her right, narrowly avoiding being skewered by another who had snuck up on her from behind with the hall stand. She landed heavily on her side, but out of reach of the two demons.

Two shots were fired and the demons went down. She turned around, nodding her thanks to Dean. Sam was in a bit of a struggle, his head probably still a bit wobbly. A scream sounded from behind. Tyler turned just in time to see Dean fighting with a child demon while a demon possessing an elderly man came at her. She would have laughed at the sight if it hadn't been a life threatening situation.

The elderly demon came at her at full speed, she had no time to get up. So she didn't. As he jumped at her, she lifted her legs and kicked hard. He went flying through the wall. Another shot was fired behind her and Sam had finally freed himself from the other demon. He was stabbing it with a knife dripping with holy water.

Dean shouted at his younger brother to stop, they needed at least one demon alive. Sam heeded his words and turned to them. Tyler was resting on one knee. There was still the elderly demon to deal with. Sam bound the wounded demon to a chair. He didn't notice the two smoldering black eyes that appeared behind him.

Dean and Tyler did. Dean screamed, but he could already see the butcher knife closing in on his little brother. He froze in fear. Sam turned around, alerted by the warning in his brother's voice. He saw the butcher knife, the blood lust in the demon's eyes and the horrible grin on his face. And then his world was suddenly upside down.

He fell, avoiding being beheaded but only so slightly. Sam looked up at the demon, whose forehead was now decorated with a bullet hole. He looked back at Dean and Tyler, who had two hands full of carpet. Sam instantly understood what had happened. As the demon attacked, Tyler had seen an opportunity and yanked out the carpet from under his feet. A good move, otherwise his head would have been rolling on the ground right now. He nodded his thanks to Tyler.

They all got up and walked over to the other demon, now struggling against his bonds. Sam kicked him in the nuts, as Dean drew a devil's trap around the man. It was the same burly man that had almost knocked Tyler over on the street. The three of them stood in a loose circle around him, just watching.

Then Dean spoke. "Why did Crowley send you guys here? To kill us?" The demon kept quiet. Sam uncorked a bottle of holy water. "Are you sure you want to do it this way?" he asked the demon. Before the demon could answer, he threw the holy water in his face. The demon screamed. But besides that he said nothing.

Sam and Dean tried to provoke him, in more ways than one. But the demon wouldn't budge. Tyler was getting goose bumps. Not because of the torture, but because the demon kept his eyes on her. No matter what, his eyes didn't stray from hers. It was creepy. Dean saw it too and he'd had enough. "Sam, exorcise him."

Sam nodded and began reciting in Latin. The demon writhed and struggled but to no avail. He would soon be ripped out of this body. He held on, but the pull was too strong. Just before he let go, he smiled at Tyler and said: "We know you. You will suffer." Then he was gone. Dean turned to Tyler, whose face was a mask. _We know you? What the hell is that supposed to mean? _He knew he wasn't going to get an answer from her.

Tyler was still looking at the demon impassively when she said: "Well…this hunt failed miserably." Sam seemed to shrink, his disappointment unhidden. "Let's go back." Tyler and Sam walked out first, with a very thoughtful Dean behind them.

The drive back to Tyler's house was a quiet one, each of them left to their own thoughts. That's why, when they arrived at the house, they didn't notice the flames at first. Nor the firemen or the police. Only until they got out of the car did they realize what was going on. The house was burning down!


	9. Chapter 9

Tyler didn't know how long she sat in the Impala, staring at the flames in disbelief. _This can't be happening._ She slowly became aware of someone repeating her name again and again. She looked to her side, locked eyes with Sam, who was talking to her. But she didn't hear anything he was saying. Before she knew it, she was up and running, not caring whether or not the Winchesters followed her.

_You will suffer._ That's what the demon had said. She hadn't taken him seriously, had thought he was bluffing. Because there was no reason he would hold a grudge against her. She didn't know him. They had never met before. _Please let them be okay. Don't let them be dead!_ She rushed past the firemen and the police, dodged Dean and outran Sam.

_They have to be okay. They have to be! I can't lose them!_ Tyler hadn't realized she had slowed down. She looked at the place her feet had taken her. Six white sheets, covering still forms_. No._ She reached down to reveal what was under the first sheet, but she didn't actually have to. She already knew. _No. No. No. NO! _She felt tears coming up, but forced them back. Crying wouldn't solve anything. It never did.

_Everyone around me keeps dying. The demon was right after all: I will suffer. As I have been since I was born._ Tyler clenched her fists, feeling her nails penetrating the flesh of her hands and the tears of blood slowly sliding down her arms. She turned away and walked into the wasteland behind their house.

Sam and Dean watched Tyler walk away from the bodies of her family members. Sam moved in her direction but Dean grabbed him by the arm. "She wants to be alone for a while." Sam looked at his brother, before nodding and stepping back. They walked to the police officer, who was making his way to them. He took off his hat as his eyes strayed to the bodies.

"Tragedy, that it," he said. The two brothers nodded gravely. "Do you know how the fire started?" Dean asked. The officer returned his hat to its rightful place as he said: "It looks like it just started out of nowhere. No bad wiring, no cigarettes lying around, no gas smell." The Winchesters looked at each other in alarm.

The demon had said Tyler would suffer. Was this what he had meant? But how could he have known this? Unless- "Friends of young Tyler?" the officer asked. "Yeah. Our father knew The General." "Take good care of that child, would you. She's had a quite eventful and painful life so far." The officer left and made his way to his car. Sam and Dean sighed.

Dean nudged Sam and together they went to look for Tyler. They found her, furiously digging in the earth. They watched as she jumped down in the hole and began tugging at something. At length, a large bag appeared. Tyler climbed out of the hole. She hoisted the bag on her left shoulder and turned. She saw Sam and Dean, standing in front of the old pickup truck. "Where are you going?" Sam asked.

"Hunting." She attempted to walk past them, but Dean stopped her. "Hunt what?" "All I know is my family is dead and someone needs to pay." Dean grabbed her arm. "Let go of me, Dean." But he wouldn't budge.

"Tyler, listen to me. Sam and I, we know what you're going through right now. But you shouldn't let the hate blind you. You need to give your family an appropriate goodbye. And then, if you still want to hunt, we will. Together."

Tyler looked at him, surprise in her eyes. Sam stepped forward. "We know how hard it is, to lose everything you love. We can be your family, if you'd let us." She looked at Sam, then her shoulders sagged. For a while, no one said anything. "I'll need some help building the pyre," Tyler said at last. Sam and Dean shot each other a glance before putting their arms around Tyler. The three of them walked back to the house.


	10. Chapter 10

The three of them watched the pyre burning, the bodies of Tyler's family going up in flames. They stood there for hours, in her backyard, just staring at the fire. A comfortable silence hung in the air. Tyler was the first to walk away, moving to her pickup truck. Sam and Dean followed her. "So, what have you decided to do?" Sam asked. Tyler sighed, glanced at the pyre and sighed again. "Revenge isn't going to bring them back. I'll just continue the way I've always done things. Man up and move on."

"That's a good motto," Dean remarked with a smile on his face. This brought a watery smile on Tyler's face. She leaned against the pickup after she threw her bag in. "What are you going to do now? Hunt this Crowley?" The Winchesters shook their heads. It was no use to go after the King of Hell right now. He'd just make them go in circles. "We're not sure."

Tyler nodded in understanding. "Well, I know what I'm going to do: hunt. That is after all, what I do best." The brothers grinned. "Feel like hunting together for a while? You know, till we all figure out what to do next," Sam asked.

She had to think about that for a while. After all, how well did she really know them? Sure their father was a friend of The General and John had always been kind to them when he came to visit. She'd even accompanied him on a hunt or two. And Sam and Dean looked to be nice people…well, nice enough for hunters. They were good people, that she knew.

But them being good people didn't mean she could trust them. She looked at the Winchesters and they looked at her in turn. Who was she kidding? These guys averted the Apocalypse, for God's sake! Who else to trust? "I guess that arrangement isn't so bad," she eventually said. Dean clapped his hands. "That's settled then. Let's go find a motel and a case."

Sam and Dean stepped into the Impala, while Tyler drove her pickup into town. They followed her to a cheap motel. "The Pink Duck? Really?" Dean said as he looked up at the neon sign. "Hey, it's a motel. It's supposed to be tacky." Tyler walked to the counter, waiting for the clerk to notice her. After finishing the page of the newspaper he was reading, he finally turned to her.

"Whatcha want?" He shot a gobble of spit to the right; it landed precisely in a jar he had put there for spitting purposes. Sam made a face and Dean turned around in disgust. Tyler cleared her throat. "A room." The clerk looked at the three of them for a long time, spat again and grabbed a key. "I don't know how y'all swing, but make too much noise and you're outta here!"

Tyler thought about commenting on that, then thought better of it and just grabbed the key and walked off. "I'll go get us some food," Sam said as he walked out, the clerk's gaze on him. Dean just slipped past the balding man and searched out the room. Tyler had left the door unlocked – she was rummaging through the mini fridge – and he walked in. She turned around as she heard him come in.

"Where's Sam?" Dean sat down on the bed. "Out looking for food." Tyler tossed him a beer and sipped on hers. Dean looked around the room. There were two beds: one single near the window and the twin beds he was sitting on. The wallpaper was a brownish green and the view from the window was a wall of red bricks. Not the best motel room he'd ever slept in, but then again it was a lot cheaper than most.

"The room's…nice." Tyler lifted her left eyebrow a little, before grinning and downing her beer. "Nice wasn't the word I'd use. But I've seen worse." She grabbed her bag and pulled out a mini laptop. She turned it on. Time to look for a supernatural creature to hunt. Before long, she settled on the floor against the wall, looking through countless of newspaper articles.

Tyler was concentrating so hard on what she was doing, she didn't even notice Dean settling next to her, his beer still in his hand as he peered over her shoulder. She only noticed it when she turned to the side as she heard Sam knock on the door - because she head butted Dean in the process. "Sorry!" Tyler put her laptop on the floor and examined his head. Dean smiled and pushed her hands away gently, as he went to open the door for Sam.

Only…it wasn't Sam at the door.


	11. Chapter 11

An really short chapter

It was the clerk, peering into the room, obviously not expecting these normal circumstances. He straightened as Dean glared down at him. "Was just checking up on you young 'uns, that's all." Tyler tried to hold in her laughter, but couldn't stop a snigger from escaping. The clerk spat again, this time his saliva ended up in the hall. Dean was of half a mind to shut the door right then and there, reconsidered and then ended up doing it anyway.

"People these days," he muttered. Another knock on the door. He swung it open, ready to tell the old man what he really thought of him and his imaginations. But this time it really was Sam, one hand still in the air as he was in the process of knocking another time. "Something wrong?" he asked. Dean shook his head and invited him in. Sam put the groceries on the table.

"So…found anything yet?" he asked Tyler as he began unpacking. She shook her head as her fingers twirled over the keyboard. Then, something caught her eye. "Wait a minute. I may have got something." She took a moment to read the article on her screen.

"In Salt Lake City, Utah, there have been several cases of young children collapsing. They're alive but it's almost like they're shut down. Their parents describe it as if they have no souls. What do you think?" Tyler asked. Dean frowned. "Well, it's worth checking out." Sam tossed him another beer. "Salt Lake City it is then."


	12. Chapter 12

Tyler sighed. The road ahead of her was long, but the road she'd already traveled was longer. Salt Lake City, Utah. Why couldn't their hunt be a little closer? Her eyes were seemingly closing on their own and she was sure the guys in the Impala behind her were as tired as she was. Just a few more minutes, she told herself. _Just a few more minutes…before I nap and crash this car! Open eyes, open!_ She checked her rear view mirror, to check if the Winchesters were still with her. Fortunately they were.

A 'welcome to Salt Lake City' passed her and she let one hand slip off the steering wheel in relief. Now all she had to do was find some crummy hotel and rest for a bit. Not sleep. She didn't do sleep, but a nap would be nice. She turned around the corner and drove up to the first motel she saw, the Impala coming up behind her truck.

Tyler jumped out of the pick up to get them a room, or rooms. She didn't care much at this point. She heard Sam and Dean get out of their car and follow her inside. "Sleep," Dean mumbled as he passed her and walked up to the counter. Sam gave her shoulder a little squeeze as they waited for Dean to get them the keys. Driving for 16 hours straight hadn't been such a good idea after all.

Their room was quite spacious, but dust was piling up in the corners and cobwebs hung from the wooden table in the middle of the room. Sam started sneezing as Dean threw their bags in a corner, stirring the piles of dust. As he was gasping for air, Sam noticed Tyler fidgeting with her watch. It was a strange watch; he'd already noticed it when they'd been back at Tyler's house. Not of regular make, and it looked heavier than normal watches.

He thought to ask her about it, but she'd already turned around to put her bag against the wall. There were two beds in the room and Tyler lifted her eyebrows, amused. "I guess you guys will just have to sleep together then." Both brothers started to protest, but she didn't give them any choice as she made herself comfortable on the smallest bed. "Come on, you're brothers. Sharing a bed isn't that bad."

Dean grumbled, but followed her lead and settled on the other bed. Sam attempted to do the same, but Dean raised a warning finger. "Keep your shirt on." Sam glared but was too tired to say anything or even think of some kind of witty remark. He lay down next to his big brother. "Night guys." "Night."

Sam tried to comfort the mother in front of him, by squeezing her hand. "I can't imagine how hard it must be for you." Sobbing, she told him how she'd found her son on the field out back, lifeless and cold. Sam sighed inwardly. All the other parents had told him the same story: finding their children somewhere where they'd thought they'd be safe, deprived of life. What a horrible scene for a parent to witness.

He'd been talking to the parents since early this morning, while Dean went to check on the children at the hospital and Tyler searched the lore for an answer to whatever or whoever was doing this. He turned his attention to the crying mother in front of him. "Thank you. I promise you we will do everything we can." She nodded at him and rose to show him the way out. Sam waited until he heard the door close behind him, before dialing Dean's number.

"Hello?" The gruffness of the voice on the other side made Sam smile.

"Hey Dean, it's me. All the parents tell the same story. The kids were all presumed at a safe place when they were attacked or assaulted or whatever. How's everything on your end."

"Sad. Those kids…it looks like they're dead, only their chests keep rising. There's no life in them at all. Whatever this is, we need to stop this."

"Exactly. I'm gonna check out the parents' backgrounds to see if they have something in common. Call you back when I know more."

"Aight," Dean hung up the phone and took a deep breath. It was difficult for him to look at those children. All of them around Ben's age. He didn't even want to imagine how those parents felt, seeing their children in such a horrible state. He walked back to the Impala, when he noticed Tyler leaning against the car.

He frowned. For a moment he thought he saw her pop something looking a lot like a pill. But as he looked closer, he saw the tic tac sticker on the bottle. He silently berated himself. Why would Tyler be popping pills? Yes, she'd lost her family recently, but she seemed to be coping. _Not everyone is damaged like you, Dean_. He raised his hand in greeting and Tyler flashed him a quick smile before coming up to him.

"Hey." She took her hands out of her pocket. "Hey, got something?" She nodded. "I think I know what we're dealing with. The Magura-Schendel." Dean frowned. Before he could ask her what the hell that was, Tyler silenced him. "Let's get Sam and I'll tell you what I know." They stepped into the Impala and drove off.

A comfortable silence hung between the two of them, as Tyler texted Sam to get back to the motel. Dean glanced at her, wondering how she could even function right now. He had heard her get up about 20 minutes after they'd all gone to bed. And she'd stayed up, for all he could tell. When he'd woken the next morning, she'd already gotten them breakfast and was doing the crossword puzzle in the newspaper.

"Aren't you tired?" he asked. Tyler turned to look at him – she'd be staring out of the window for some time. "Me? No, I'm used to surviving on power naps. It's kinda my thing." "Why?" She thought for a while, chewing on the inside of her cheek. "More convenient that way." Dean wasn't at all convinced by her answer, but decided to let the matter be. If she didn't want to share that with him, she had every right to keep it to herself.

They didn't even know each other that well anyways. They drove onto the parking lot of the motel, right when Sam walked over. Time to get to know more about this Magura thingy.


	13. Chapter 13

Sam walked up to the Impala as Dean and Tyler got out. He smiled inwardly as the way they walked up to him reminded him that they were actually quite alike. They carried themselves in the same way – confident and suave. "So, what did you find out?" he asked as they closed the door of their room behind them. "We are hunting a Magura-Schendel," Tyler said.

"A what?" Sam sat down on the bed as Dean opened the fridge and rummaged around, looking for something to drink. "A Magura-Schendel. In Jewish culture, people believed there was this shape shifting monster, who came out at night to devour the souls of little children. It's supposed to live under the sands of Israel, but…it seems like this may be it. How did the kids look to you, Dean?"

Dean thought for a while. "Those kids did seem…lifeless. Their eyes were empty." Tyler nodded, as he confirmed her suspicion. Sam frowned. "But wait. You said the Magura-Schendel _devours_ the kids' souls. So…even if we kill it, their souls are lost." A silence fell. "We won't be able to help the kids already affected, but we might save some it hasn't touched yet," Tyler said as she fidgeted with her watch.

Sam sighed. _Those poor kids._ He got up and took the beer Dean handed him. "Well, we know what we have to do then. Hunt this damn Magura-Schendel." Tyler hopped on the counter, turning to the Winchester brothers. "The lore says it lives under sand. So, we look for sand I guess." Soon, they were busy looking for places with sand.

It seemed like only a few minutes had passed when Sam turned off his laptop. Midnight. Freaking midnight! Dean was already out; lying sprawled on the bigger bed while Tyler was still peering over the books she'd gotten from the library that morning. The way to kill a Margura-Schendel had to be in there. She looked up as he put away his laptop. "You should get some sleep."

He nodded and stretched. "You should too." Tyler raised her left eyebrow. "I don't sleep, remember?" "Right. I forgot." They switched places as Sam crawled next to Dean, slowly but carefully rolled his brother on his side to create room for himself. Tyler sighed and closed her book, opting to turn off the lights to help the others sleep. She searched for her mini flashlight, to continue reading about the monster they were hunting.

Sam couldn't sleep. Dean was grumbling in his sleep and kept edging closer to him, which made Sam move ever closer to the bed's edge. Dean smelled of booze. Sam turned around and saw Tyler trying to read a book with the light of a small flashlight. She crunched up her face, trying to make sense of the words with so little light. He sat up.

"Why are you still up?" Tyler asked quietly. "Can't sleep. Dean's hogging the bed." Tyler smiled and closer her book, rubbing her eyes. "At least he's sleeping," Sam said, mostly to himself. But she overheard and looked at him questioningly. How should he explain it to her? That Dean hadn't been sleeping well ever since coming back from Hell, and especially after Cas betrayed them.

"After Hell he…didn't sleep for weeks. He was exhausted, physically and emotionally. And after Cas…well, he has been napping more than sleeping. Or drinking himself into a drunken stupor." Tyler cocked her head a little as she sat down on her bed, cross-legged. "Cas was our friend. But he and Dean, they had a really strong bond, you know? Because Cas raised him from Hell."

"I can only imagine," Tyler said. "And then having to say goodbye to Ben and Lisa, the only chance he had for a real family. It broke something in him." Tyler rubbed her neck as she said "Well, you need your sleep as well, so you can have my bed. " Sam started to protest, but Tyler had already jumped off the bed. "Stop objecting grumpy. I'm going out for a walk." She walked out.


	14. Chapter 14

Tyler walked the street, shivering. _I should've brought a coat_. She hugged herself in an attempt to stay warm, but to no avail. She wondered if she should go back to the motel – Sam must've been asleep by now. And she needed to take her pills. It had been almost two months since she last took them. The effects were already starting to show.

She stopped at a vending machine, contemplating buying a drink. But she changed her mind and strode back to the room. She could just make herself some hot chocolate or a cup of tea. She shuddered as she closed the door behind her, the warmth of the room surprising her. Sam and Dean were sound asleep.

Steadily Tyler searched her bag for her pills, finally locating them in one of the many pockets of her coat. She didn't remember putting them there. _Oh wait, I did this morning. I took one before meeting with Dean. _She quickly downed three more. Since Sam was now occupying her bed, she slid down against the wall and made herself comfortable on the floor. It would be a long night, and she was going to be awake the entire time.

O0o0o0o0o0o0O

Dean woke up with a start: he'd been dreaming about Cas again. He sat up and saw his younger brother lying in Tyler's bed. And Tyler was sitting at the table, eating scrambled eggs, deeply engrossed in the book she was reading. Her eyes flicked to him for a few seconds and she nodded at him before turning back to her eggs.

Dean hurried to brush his teeth and take a quick shower, before joining Tyler at the table. Sam was still asleep. He saw a chance as she put down her fork to turn a page and stole some of her eggs. "Hey, those are mine!" He smirked and swallowed the food. "Tastes good, made it yourself?" Tyler tried to get the fork back from him, but settled for spearing the pieces of egg with her knife as she nodded.

She looked over at Sam and said: "He must have been really tired, huh?" Dean turned to look at Sam and smirked. He grabbed another forkful of eggs. "Well, more for me then." Tyler thought of hogging the plate, but decided against it. She was full anyway. "Help yourself," she pushed her plate toward him. She watched Dean eat the rest of her breakfast in an incredibly fast pace. _Damn, he should enter eating contests._

Dean felt Tyler watching him and gradually became more self-aware. He slowed his pace and chewed a lot more before swallowing. He noticed her noticing it and lifting an eyebrow before going back to her book. He smiled inwardly. Most women would be slightly disgusted but not her. She just accepted it. Accepted him. If Sam had been awake, he would definitely have called him out on his eating habits.

They both turned at the sound of Sam groaning. He turned over in his sleep, pulling the blanket even further over his head. "He's not having a 'happy dream', is he?" Tyler asked. Dean shrugged. "Oh god, I hope not." Dean barked out a laugh as he saw her face. It was time to wake Sammy up.


	15. Chapter 15

"Dean, this is the fourth sandbox we've searched through. The Magura-Schendel isn't here," Sam complained, as he threw down his shovel. His back ached from all the shoveling he'd done, while his brother was just standing there next to the Impala. Watching. Just watching. He hated when Dean did that. "Come on Sammy, put some back into it! You've only searched the first half of the sandbox," he teased.

Sam considered dragging his brother into the sandbox and make him eat sand, before changing his mind and grabbed the shovel again. He wasn't going to be childish about this. Dean was seemingly less depressed and he wasn't going to mess that up. If him injuring his back would gets Dean's mind off losing Cas, then that was great. Not for his back, but he was a Winchester. And Winchesters tend to heal quickly. Or at least pretend they do.

Dean watched his brother shovel his way through the layers of sand, grinning inwardly. Sam was way too nice to say anything about his ditching his responsibilities. There was no way he was going to take over the shovel. Like Sam'd said: this was the fourth sandbox. The chance of actually finding something was very slim.

He heard the sound of iron scraping on stone and footsteps coming up behind him and turned. Tyler shuffled toward them, her shovel dragged behind her. She was panting slightly and had some dirt on her face. "Nothing," she said as she saw Dean looking at her with a question in his eyes. She threw her shovel to the ground and sat down on the hood of the Impala.

"You have a little something…there," Dean pointed out. Tyler quickly wiped off the dirt and sweat. "Sorry. How long has Sam been digging?" Dean shrugged. An hour? Two? He didn't really remember. Apparently Sam heard them talking, because he had turned to them to show off his sour face. Dean decided to throw him a bone and walked up to his younger brother to take over the shovel.

"Gimme."

"Dean, it's not here. You don't have to dig. Let's just go back to the motel."

"Sam, what did dad teach us?"

"When looking for something, leave no stone unturned."

"Exactly. So let's go back to searching for this Madura thingy."

"Magura," Sam corrected him.

"What did you call me?"

"It's a Magura-Schendel. Not a Madura."

"I knew that," Dean said.

"Yeah, right."

"I did!"

"Whatever Dean."

"Uh," Tyler tried to interrupt.

"What you don't believe me, Sammy?"

"No, I don't. And stop calling me, Sammy!"

"Guys…"

"I will call you Sammy, because that's what you are. Sammy."

"Dean, seriously. Stop it."

"Guys!"

"I will stop whenever I want," Dean snorted.

"I'm a grown man! Treat me like one!"

"GUYS!"

"WHAT?" they screamed as they turned to her.

"Behind you."

Both brothers frowned and turned around. Just in time to face a gigantic monster rising up from the sandbox. They jumped out of the way as a huge arm took a swing at them. "Son of a bitch," Dean screamed as he landed heavily on his back. Tyler emptied her shot gun into what appeared to be the Magura-Schendel. It had no effect whatsoever. Sam scrambled up, with a heartily "Crap." This wasn't going to be as much of a breeze as he had thought.


	16. Chapter 16

The sand monster attacked them fiercely, angered even more by the shotguns they emptied into it. Neither the salt rounds nor silver bullets had any effect on it whatsoever. They were in a bad situation and as the Magura-Schendel continued to make its way out of the sand box, they realized it was going to be even worse. It already towered over them, and it wasn't even half way out.

A sandy arm pinned Dean to the ground, crushing him slowly. "Dean!" Sam screamed and ran towards his brother, only to be rammed into a tree. Tyler saw it all happening, locked eyes with Dean and ran. The other direction. _She is running away! Is she just going to leave us here?_ Sam was unconscious, there would be no help coming from him.

Dean could feel his breath being pushed out of him, slowly but steadily. He wouldn't last another two minutes with the Magura-Schendel's arm on top of him. He couldn't believe this was how his life would end. Crushed by sand? Abandoned by a girl he thought of as his friend? At least Sammy wouldn't have to see. He had already seen his big brother die more than enough times. At least God, if there was one, was merciful on his younger brother.

Tears squeezed out of Dean's eyes, muddying his vision. He could feel a rib snap under the weight of the sand monster. Not much longer, he told himself. Would he go to heaven this time? Or back to hell? Maybe he shouldn't think about that. Hell wasn't a happy memory for him. _Crap. I can't….breathe…._He could feel himself slipping away and heard a groan come from Sam's direction. _Oh God no._ Please don't let him see. Dean saw the world blacken before him.

A sneaker stomped down near his failing eyes, a voice resounding through the darkness. "Hey Sandman! Over here!" The sound of water reached his ears and the weight was suddenly lifted from his chest. Gasping, Dean sat up, his head groggy. He heard screams, inhuman screams and saw Sam looking at something behind him. Carefully, he turned around.

Tyler was standing across the monster, with a hose in her hands. The Magura-Schendel was slowly dissolving into a mud pile. Sam crawled to his brother, helping him up. "You came back," Dean managed to say. Tyler turned her head. "Well, I never meant to leave forever. I had a plan." "So we see," Sam said.

She turned off the water and threw the shovel to Sam. "I don't think it's dead, so we better scoop him up in a bucket and seal him in concrete or something." Sam groaned but started scooping up the mud as Tyler went to fetch the bucket. Dean made his way to the Impala and sat down on her hood. This was bad. One of his ribs was definitely broken. That meant the hospital for him and he hated hospitals.

After a while Sam and Tyler joined him at the car. "Ready?" They nodded. They got into the Impala and drove away. They needed to find a place to bury this damn monster.


	17. Chapter 17

Dean woke up, his head a bit groggy, the sun shining through the drapes. White drapes. _White drapes?_ The motel didn't have white drapes, did it? He sat up slowly, hissing as stabs of pain hit his side, only noticing the IV drip attached to his arm because it restricted his movement. A groan escaped his lips. He was in the hospital.

Strange. He didn't remember going to the hospital. As he slowly forced himself into a seated position, he saw Sam and Tyler, across the room. Sam was slumped down in a highly uncomfortable looking chair, asleep. And Tyler was seating cross-legged, on a chair near the window, staring outside. She looked peaceful, and yet almost like she wasn't really there.

Or at least her thoughts weren't. A half-smile was on her face, the sunlight hitting her glossy black hair just right, her green eyes softened. Dean smiled to himself. She looked so different, sitting there looking at nothing. Young. No longer scarred by the hunters life. Because that was the ugly truth. All of them were scarred. Messed up. Broken. No one in their right mind would ever choose this occupation freely.

And yet, she had. Her family was gone now and yet she had decided to keep on hunting. At first she had done it for revenge, but over the past few days, Dean had seen that fiery and determined look in her eyes disappear. Whenever their eyes met these days, they were full of life, amusement and a little bit of mischief maybe. The same words he would use to describe her.

Dean frowned. Why was he being thoughtful again? Hospitals tended to make him think deep thoughts and reflect upon himself. He watched Tyler jerk, and touch her watch as her mind returned from wherever it had gone before. That watch. There was something about it. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something wrong with it. He didn't know why he thought that. But he could feel it.

Tyler stretched the finger of her left hand – the hand with the watch – and Dean's frown deepened. Did he just see a spasm of pain in her face? No, that couldn't be. Maybe the watch was on too tight. He shifted almost imperceptible, but Tyler noticed anyway and turned to him. When she saw that he was awake, she got up and stretched before sitting down on his bed; careful not to initiate body contact which would result in pain.

"How're you doing?" she asked softly.

Sam moved in his chair, but didn't awake.

Dean winched as he said: "Alright, I guess. I'm still breathing."

"Painfully, probably."

He grinned and after a few seconds she rewarded him with a crooked smile.

"How did I end up here? I don't remember anything other than us driving off to bury the Magura thingy."

"You fainted while we were driving. Sam and I decided it was best if he drove you to the hospital, while I buried the damn thing."

He fainted? Dean grimaced. How very unmanly.

"Glad you're alright though. I didn't mean to take so long to get back, but man, is it hard to find a hose in this neighborhood!"

Dean barked a laugh.

"Um," Tyler was at once serious again. "Look Dean. I recon you and Sam would want to get back to searching for something to save Castiel. It was really nice of you guys to offer hunting with me for a while, but-"

"Tyler, you're not a burden."

This silenced her.

"You're actually a nice asset to the team. We can hunt and do something about Cas at the same time. But thank you, for considering walking away."

"Well, Castiel sounded like someone very important to you guys. I don't want to be in the way of his salvation."

"You won't. Actually, I think Cas would actually like you."

Tyler raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Yes, you two have some things in common."

"Like what?"

"You're both masters at deadpan, though Cas just doesn't get most jokes. And you're both very handy in a pinch."

"Aha."

"And you're both my friends."

Tyler looked at him.

"Friends?"

"Yeah, don't you consider Sammy and me as your friends."

"Hm…you know, when we started out I saw us as partners. Friends huh? I could live with that."

"Good."

Behind them, a still sleeping Sam tried to untangle his legs and promptly fell off the chair. He woke with a start.

"Sammy, good to see you up again," Dean teased.

"Shut up. You know how hard it is to sleep in these chairs?"

"Bitch."

"Jerk."


	18. Chapter 18

Tyler kneaded the muscles in her neck as she slowly straightened, suppressing a yawn. One month. One month since she met the Winchesters. One month since she lost her family. _Again_, her mind whispered. She frowned. _Again?_ She didn't remember her parents or her early childhood. In fact, everything prior to her seventh birthday was one big blank. And even those memories were blurry. She remembered being crushed by a collapsed pillar, flames all around her. She remembered waking from ghastly and macabre nightmares not of her own. She remembered shying away from the General's comforting arms.

She sighed. It had taken her two full years to trust the General and the other kids. Two years where she'd maintained a stony silence and avoided any kind of bond. Tyler could only imagine how hard that must have been for him. For all of them. To have saved a girl who didn't seem to want to get saved. A girl who had decided to forgo sleep, to avoid the nightmares that haunted her. Even now, years later, she could still feel their steady pull in her mind. She shook her head. Now was not the time for reflection. She turned off the laptop and looked over at the sleeping forms of Sam and Dean.

It was the dead of night and those two had fallen asleep hours ago. _Sleep_. The one thing that eluded her. The one thing she denied herself. How great it must be to be able to sleep, Tyler mused. Although neither of the brothers slept soundly. Sam was coping with the breaking of the wall in his head, which has separated all that had happened in the Cage with Lucifer, Michael and Adam – their half brother. Last week he'd woken up screaming more often than not. She'd seen the worry in Dean's eyes and the fear that his little brother may never be alright.

She longed to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. To whisper the same white lie she'd used whenever Dante would crawl into her bed and cry through the night because he hated how other people's thoughts would invade his mind. When Jet had finally opened up to her about the slaughter of his father and older sister and how certain smells or turns of phrase reminded him of them. Or when she'd come home that one horrible night, drenched in rain, sweat, mud and blood, bringing the devastating news of the General's death. "_It will be alright. Give it time_." But Dean would see it for the lie it was.

It would never be alright. Hell wasn't something to suppress, to block or to simple scrub off with a hot shower. Hell stayed with you, forever. She knew that and Dean did too. He too woke from nightmares in the middle of the night. Even though he'd make no sound, she always saw the sweat on his brow and heard the swiftness of his breath. Their eyes would meet for a fleeting second, then she'd avert her eyes, leaving him his privacy. It wasn't just Hell and the things he did there that plagued Dean - though he had never explicitly told her what it was he'd done that he thought he didn't deserve to be saved – it was Castiel too.

Castiel. The angel who wanted to be God. Tyler had never met him, but she felt for him. Unlike Sam and Dean, who were still baffled by his betrayal, she understood somewhat. The angel had felt cornered and desperate and no one seemed to take this civil war in Heaven seriously. Dean felt Castiel should've asked for their help. But how could he? He was an angel. An absolute being, higher up the food chain than humans. How could such a being _ask_ for help? How could he admit he wasn't strong enough? They'd had heard enough of the recent news to know Castiel was devoted to his newly and self-appointed role.

Rain falling where there was drought. Tyrants and dictators dying in their beds. Racist groups struck by lightning. They couldn't really find fault in those things. But the news changed about two weeks ago. Now there was talk about massacres, people disappearing and even other angels dying. That last tidbit they'd received from Bobby, a mutual friend. Something had turned justice into retribution, vengeance even. Bobby had sounded gruff as usual – but there had been something else in his voice. Anger? Fear? Tyler didn't know. Whatever it was, it had made the brothers (Dean especially) even more determined and frantic in their search for Castiel.

And – unknown to them – Tyler had been scouring the web as well. And she had possibly found a pattern. She hadn't mentioned it to them yet, because she wasn't sure. She looked at her watch. Almost morning. Time to take a shower and get ready for a new day. She thought about taking one of her pills, but changed her mind. No need to get dependant on those things again. She could do without them. She grabbed her bag and disappeared into the bathroom.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Dean floated in the space between dreams and full consciousness, his breath ragged. The screams of Hell tugged at him, pulling him back into the nightmare, the memory, as the sound of naked feet padding past him reached his ears._ Padding_? His eyes shot open. Tyler was moving through the house they were squatting in, wrapped in a towel, her wet feet marking her otherwise soundless passage. He stilled himself as he continued to watch her. He started to notice things about her, things that he'd never noticed before because she'd always have her guard up. The grace with which she moved. The way she was almost inhumanly light on her feet. Her tendency to bite her lower lip while lost in thought. How her long wet hair framed her face and clung to her neck and back.

It was quite refreshing to see Tyler like this – the relaxation of her body, the unguarded side of her. And then it was gone. Her shoulders stiffened ever so slightly and she cocked her head a little as if listening. "In some cultures it's considered rude to stare," she said as she turned toward him, her arms crossed. A closed stance. Dean sat up and rolled his shoulders. He looked over at Sam for a few seconds and then back to Tyler. "I didn't want to cause any awkward situations," he said lamely.

"And staring at me from under the blankets isn't awkward?" she asked as she made her way back to the bathroom. Dean opened his mouth to answer, then thought better of it. He shrugged. "Almost finished in there?" he asked as she opened the door. She swung back, glanced at him and at Sam, then looked inside the bathroom. "Yeah…though I doubt there will be any warm water left." Dean groaned. _Not a cold shower again!_ Tyler smirked before entering the bathroom. He made the bed, his concentration wavering._ "Bow down before me. I am God." Oh Cas… _He didn't want to think about this, about his friend. But it was better than thinking about his nightmare.

He'd dreamed of Alistair, that torturous son of a bitch. Of all the things he'd done to Dean and all the things he'd made Dean do. Dean shuddered, feeling the sudden need to empty his stomach. But he swallowed his bile and turned his mind to the present. To Sammy. He'd no idea how his little brother was. He'd seemed fine in the aftermath of the fight with the Magura-Schendel. And then, out of the blue, he started screaming in his sleep. Twisting and turning. Seizing._ What the hell happened to you in the Cage Sammy? _He sat down on his brother's bed, watching him sleep. At least he was calm now.

His phone started to vibrate, catching his attention. Dean moved towards the table, still moving carefully as if his ribs hadn't healed already. He saw the caller ID and frowned before he picked up. "Bobby, whatcha got?"


	19. Chapter 19

A lead. Finally a lead on Castiel's whereabouts. Dean tried to suppress the mixture of joy, angst and anxiety slowly filling his stomach, focusing instead on the road in front of him. Bobby had sounded strangely flat as he'd shared the news, telling Dean not to get his hopes up. This was no longer his friend. This was a mutated angel, plagued with delusions of being God. And awkward silence had fallen then. Dean hadn't known what to say. Bobby was right. But still, he couldn't abandon all hope. Sure, Cas had screwed up royally and betrayed them – he still wanted to punch his lights out for what he'd done to Sam – but before this whole mess Cas had helped them so many times. Without question. Without thinking about the consequences to himself. Cas had gripped him tight and raised him from perdition.

Sam and Tyler had shared a fleeting glance when he'd told them the news but didn't object to pursuing this lead. In fact, they'd been quiet the entire time. He looked over to Sam, who rested his head against the window. He looked…rested. Dean checked his mirror and snuck a glance at Tyler who was busy with her phone. The swiftness with which she texted surprised him. He thought about breaking the silence, but it was a comfortable silence. It was Tyler who broke the silence as she said: "Bobby already arrived. He asks how many minutes till we get there." So it was Bobby she'd been texting with. _Strange._ Bobby always said he hated texting. "Two, maybe three," Dean replied. Sam sat up, his posture suddenly tense.

"Dean, are you sure about this?" he asked, sharing his concern for the first time. Dean frowned. "When we have a lead, we follow it, Sam." Sam sighed. "But this isn't a regular hunt. Are you certain you can gank him if necessary? Can _anyone_ gank him for that matter?" Dean sucked in a heap of air, trying to keep calm. Sam was just pointing out the obvious. Castiel might try and harm them – or worse. "I need to do this, Sammy. I need to know." _To know if Cas is still in there_, Sam added silently. He looked at the rear view mirror and caught Tyler's eye. She looked away quickly, almost as if she was guilty, but that was insane. What could she be guilty of? She turned to her phone again, her fingers speeding over the keyboard.

"How did you get Bobby to text?" he asked. Alarmed, she put down her phone. "We always text. Apparently, he liked me better when I didn't talk." Sam grinned. That sounded like Bobby alright. They drove up to their destination and saw their old friend pacing back and forth near his car. The brothers got out quickly and greeted him. When Tyler got out, Sam thought he saw her and Bobby share an unidentifiable look. But he shrugged it off as Bobby engulfed her in a hug. "How are y'all idgits doing?" he asked. "Better when we get this over with," Sam replied before cringing as he saw his brother grind his teeth. _Bad choice of words._

Dean avoided all eye contact as he asked: "So, have you spotted him already?" The old man shook his head. "I just want to…warn you guys." Again a quick glance at Tyler. "He may not be Cas anymore." Dean sighed. " Bobby, I know, okay? He's a mutated angel-" "That's not what I meant." Both brothers frowned. But before they could ask him what he meant by that, they heard the familiar sound of wings rustling. They turned around to face Castiel.

_No! What? What kind of madness is this?_ In front of them stood a creature – something no longer human. It didn't even look like Cas anymore. The limbs were strangely elongated and looked as if there were an extra few joints. The skin of its chest stretched over its ribs, and looked about to be torn apart every time it took a breath. The eyes were black and bulging and the creature's skin color looked like dried parchment. As the creature spoke, Sam drew in his breath sharply. Even the voice was unrecognizable. "Hello Winchesters," it crackled. This wasn't Cas. He wasn't sure this had ever been Cas. Tyler took all of it in from a distance. It was clear to her – from the guys' reactions – that this wasn't what they'd expected.

Dean hands slowly formed into fists as anger surged through him. _"He may not be Cas anymore."_ This was Bobby had meant. The bastards, those filthy bastards, had ditched Cas and taken hold of another vessel. Or so he hoped, because if what those Leviathans were wearing really was Cas…he didn't want to think about that. "Where is Cas?" he heard himself ask. The creature smiled – as least that was what he presumed that facial expression was. "Oh, he's…preoccupied." Something snapped in him and he flew at the creature, wanting only to claw and tear and _kill_. But before he could even grab a hold, he was already flying backwards hard. "DEAN!" he heard from three throats before he landed on something solid and everything went black.


	20. Chapter 20

"_You're right." "That might be the case." "He's not waking up." "Cas." "That thing." "Are you sure?" "I can't say."_ Dean heard the voices around him, knew it was Sam, Bobby and Tyler talking, but he couldn't understand it. What where they talking about? Who were they talking about? Why couldn't he move? And why was everything black? His head – well, he thought it was his head – was throbbing. He wanted to get up. He needed to get up. He needed to get to Cas. _Cas._ CAS!

Dean shot up, his eyes wide, the angel's name on his lips. Sam, who had been sitting on the side of the bed, watching over his big brother, maneuvered out of the way quickly. Three pair of eyes regarded Dean as he fought to keep his breathing steady. He blinked, swallowed the scream he'd thought to utter, calmed himself and blinked again. Tyler held up a glass of muddy water apologetically. He stared at it for while, his mind trying to tell him what he was supposed to do. Tyler uncertainly moved her weight from one foot to the other, waiting for him to take the glass. "It's the best we've got," she said. Slowly, Dean's arm rose and he grabbed the glass.

He nodded – or moved his head in a way supposed to imitate a nod – and hoped she understood that he was still very groggy. Bobby said nothing as he drank his water, but his fingers drummed quietly on the table. Bobby's face was disfigured by a long gash. Dean stopped drinking and squinted. Bobby's sleeves were tattered and there seemed to be some kind of splatter on his left leg. It was blood. He swung his head to Sam, who was sporting a black eye. How could he not have noticed that before? Sam was also standing a bit bent, almost as if standing up straight hurt. Gradually his eyes rested on Tyler.

Her sleeves were pretty much torn off and it looked as if her right cheek had been burned. She was holding a wet cloth against her face, trying not to wince. Suddenly images came flooding back. A lead on Castiel. Bobby trying to tell him the angel was no longer _their _angel. That monster coming out, saying Castiel was busy. So it hadn't been Castiel. It couldn't be Castiel. It couldn't. He wouldn't accept it. He couldn't. He remembered not being able to think clearly and attacking that…thing. And then everything went black.

"It's time for you to talk, son," Bobby said finally. "We need to know if your head is a'right or if we should get you to hospital." Dean put the glass on the nightstand. Nightstand? "Where the hell are we?" "Bobby's old love nest," Tyler said, before receiving an angry glare from the old man. "What?" "I used to come here, whenever I was hunting in the area. Real hunting. Game," Bobby explained. "That's not all you hunted," Sam murmured. Tyler stifled a laugh. "Why, I oughta throw you two giggling girls out!" Bobby exclaimed.

Dean didn't understand the situation at all, but he was feeling better. His head was starting to feel normal again; the throbbing lessening by the minute. Sam, Bobby and Tyler seemed to be fine – well, as fine as battered people can be anyway. "What about Cas?" As soon as the angel's name left his mouth, the cheery atmosphere evaporated. A silence fell. "Well, we established _that_ wasn't Cas," Sam said. "And?" "And what? It wasn't Cas." Dean shifted violently. "So where is he?" Bobby and Tyler shared a glance and she shook her head slightly. It was easy to miss, but Dean noticed it. There was something they were keeping from him. And seemingly from Sam. He tried to catch her eye, but she avoided his insistent gaze.

"You should get some more rest, Dean, " Sam said. Tyler and Bobby stood up at the exact moment, as if hearing a signal. "We'll leave you two alone then," Bobby said. "Bobby," Dean said. The old man froze in his tracks and Tyler waited a bit longer than normal at the door, before walking out. "You'd tell me, right? If you'd found Cas?" Bobby nodded, pushed his cap down and walked out. As soon as Bobby closed the door he turned to Tyler.

"Are you sure about this, kiddo?" Bobby asked. "No doubt about it. My contacts don't lie." Bobby sighed and seemed to shrink. "What will we tell Dean?" Tyler fiddled with her watch. "Nothing for now. I will investigate this myself first. If it is true, the person most equipped to handle a situation like is me. You know that, Bobby. You know what's in my blood." At the world 'blood' Bobby looked her in the eye. "That's only one half of you. The other half is human. You're not immortal. By heavens, girl! This is Purgatory we're talking about!"


	21. Chapter 21

Dean sighed. They'd stayed in the cabin for three weeks as they rested and healed. Bobby had left a week before that. He'd mumbled something about helping out an old friend who was in trouble, at which point Sam and Tyler had exchanged a meaningful glance. Bobby was out before they could start teasing him. Dean rolled his shoulders, waiting for the stabs of pain he was sure would come, but there was no more pain. He was healed. Physically anyways. There was still a gaping hole in his soul. The first lead they'd had on Cas in months turned out to be a dead-end.

_What was that thing?_ Dean looked out of the window. Sam was cutting wood. Tyler was leaning against the Impala, drinking a soda, watching Sam and apparently directing his swings. Sam was getting annoyed. Dean saw it in his face. Tyler saw it too, he noticed, as she smirked and downed her soda before going back inside. Watching his little brother hacking away at the wood, and hearing Tyler enter the cabin, Dean found himself smiling. If they hadn't been raised as hunters, this might have been their life. He and Sam, living a quiet life. Sam would have been a lawyer. And he would have been…_what?_ A mechanic maybe. Or maybe a professional wrestler? Dean chuckled. A wrestler, him?

He pictured himself in those speedos professional wrestlers always seemed to wear. He shuddered. No. Better to think of himself as a mechanic. Or a private detective. He might even have gone into the army. Be a Navy Seal or something. Tyler would be their good friend and neighbor, coming around whenever it pleased her to borrow stuff she didn't really need. And he was sure some of them would have had kids by now. Tyler coming into the bedroom disturbed his train of thought. He looked up. "Hot outside," Tyler said as a way of greeting as she handed him a coke.

He hadn't been outside today yet, but he found himself nodding. It did look hot outside. "Might go outside for a while later, when the temperature drops," he replied. Tyler settled on the nightstand. Dean opened his coke can and took a few sips. He was getting uncomfortable as her eyes didn't leave him. He thought about breaking the silence, when she spoke. "You seemed a mile away when I came in." "Yeah, I was just thinking how life would be if we hadn't been raised aware of all the things that go bump in the night." Tyler lifted an eyebrow. "You'd be a mechanic, right? Fixing old cars?" she said. Dean smiled. "Yeah. Maybe."

"I'd be a professional surfer." This surprised him. She didn't look like a surfer chick to him. She saw the questioning look on his face and sniggered. "Spent some of my childhood in Hawaii, before I met the General. We still went back there every summer. Maybe when I'm retired, I'll move back there." "It certainly explains your laid back attitude," Dean said. "Island people. We're a different breed." Sam entering the bedroom, all sweaty and panting, startled the both of them. It took him a while to catch his breath. "Well, we have enough firewood to get us through a harsh winter."

Dean clapped his hands. "We ain't going to need it. We're leaving." "We are?" Sam and Tyler asked. "Yup, found us a case." "Where?" Sam inquired as he wiped the sweat of his brow. "Oregon."


	22. Chapter 22

_What am I doing here?_ Tyler was standing in the rain, watching Dean and Sam argue in their motel room. She had no intention of going in just yet, even though she was soaked to the bone. Oregon. She should be going to visit her contacts. Missouri and Bobby had given her all the information she needed. Her eyes were glued to the two brothers arguing over the case they'd found. Five beheaded women, found in empty shacks, their bodies hacked and slashed. Morbid, yes. Supernatural, maybe. Sam wasn't so sure. Dean was. They'd been bickering all the way from the morgue to the motel. She had gone out to grab some food, and to get away from them.

Being around the Winchesters left her with a sour taste in her mouth. She hated to keep things from them. Well, things that weren't her private affairs anyways. This was about Castiel and Purgatory. This was about torture and struggle. If her sources were right. And she suspected they were. They had never led her astray before. But she couldn't abandon them. Not on this hunt. There was something about the bodies…something was off. She had no idea what, but she trusted her gut feeling. Something bad was happening. Of course, dead women spread all over a city was never good, but it felt even worse than it should.

Silently she approached the motel and made her way in. No use thinking about Castiel or Purgatory right now. There was nothing she could do about that now. She needed to get her head in the game. Tomorrow they'd check out some of the shacks. Before opening the door and entering the room, Tyler checked her messages. Bobby again. Communicating in code to make sure Sam and Dean wouldn't find out. Nothing new on his end. She had expected that. He told her to be careful. She'd expected that too.

* * *

><p>Sam and Dean were quiet as they followed Tyler old pickup truck up the muddy road. Things had been strange between the three of them. She'd been so silent the past few days. Even more than she usually was. Sam had seen her fiddling with her watch a lot and told himself to ask her about that thing one of those days. His brother had been strangely silent as well. Sam worried about that. Dean only became so silent when he was brooding on something or reflecting on himself.<p>

Dean parked the car as Tyler got out. She grabbed her sawed-off and waited for the guys to join her. Together they entered the shack, guns at the ready. It was pitch-black. But they could hear the whimpering clearly. Dean signaled Sam and Tyler to approach cautiously as he moved forward. As his eyes started to adjust, he could see two dark shapes. He pointed his shotgun, but didn't shoot. Sam was squinting to make out the shapes. Tyler was simply looking. They couldn't see what she saw. After all, they were human.

She could see the bloodied body lying on the floor, head more than a few feet away. Slowly she surveyed the corpse, counting the cuts and bruises. Whatever did this….it took pleasure in torture. She moved forward towards the brunette crouching next to the body, covered with blood as well. Sam grabbed her arm to stop her, at the same time as the woman looked up. Her eyes were as blue as the ocean. Those eyes seemed to pierce their souls. Her mouth opened. She let out a piercing scream.

That scream was too…otherworldly to be considered human. Dean felt his arms rise and pointed his gun at her, seeing from the corner of his eye that Sam had done the same. They had to gank it, now that it was vulnerable. They took aim. And stopped themselves right on time as Tyler stepped in front of them. "Can't let you do that." Neither of them lowered weapons.

"Move out of the way, Tyler. She's a supernatural creature." Tyler nodded thoughtfully. "Yes. But she's my supernatural creature." The guys frowned. As it became clear she wasn't going to move, they lowered their weapons, slowly. Tyler watched them for a while, making sure they weren't going to shoot and turned to the woman. She was whimpering. Tyler crouched in front of her and inspected her. "Serena, are you hurt?" The woman kept whimpering. "Serena, is this your blood. Serena! Serena, look at me! Are you hurt?"

Becoming impatient and annoyed as she kept being ignored, Tyler smacked the woman in the face. "OW!" the woman screamed as her eyes snapped into focus. Sam and Dean looked at each other, confused. "Are you hurt?" Tyler repeated. "I am now!" Tyler stood up and gestured for the woman to do the same. They turned to the brothers.

"This is Serena. She's a Nymph." As she spoke those words, Tyler realized what her gut had been telling her all this time. The women were all Nymphs. She'd recognized the imprints of their necklaces on their necks in the lab, but hadn't been able to put two and two together. Sam and Dean fidgeted. "She did this?" Sam ventured. Tyler shook her head. Sam frowned. She took both guys by the arm and led them away from Serena. "How can you be sure?" Dean asked. "Because she-"

A scream interrupted Tyler. They looked back. It seemed the Nymph only now noticed the blood she was covered. She went down as she fainted. "Is afraid of blood."


	23. Chapter 23

Sam and Dean lounged in the chairs in their motel room, waiting for Tyler to come out of the bathroom. As they'd carried the Nymph Serena back to their room, she'd dragged the woman into the bathroom, to "clean her up", she'd said. They'd heard the bath getting filled for a while and now it was silent. Sam glanced at Dean who was nursing a beer. He had said nothing since they found Serena.

Tyler was diligent as she washed the blood of her friend. Not one splatter could remain, otherwise Serena would go into an anxious frenzy. And she couldn't have that, now that she'd stepped in between her and the Winchesters. _Stupid woman, what are you doing here?_ Serena groaned, opening her eyes slowly. "Where am I?" she asked.

"Somewhere safe. What happened, Serena. Why are Nymphs getting killed?" Serena slowly sat up, hugging herself. "I don't know. I just….We were just out taking a stroll." Tyler frowned. Serena wasn't the kind of person to just take a stroll, in a different city. "Why here?" she asked. Serena looked away. "Serena, why here?" The Nymps still avoided her glare. Tyler sighed, stood up and grabbed her friend by the arm.

She heaved her up, dragged her out of the bathroom , past the two surprised brothers and out of the motel room. She pushed her out and slammed the door shut, screaming: "If you want to play mute, go do it somewhere else!" _Three, two, one._ Serena started banging on the door, yelling for them to let her back in. Tyler ignored her. Dean and Sam looked at each other. "Uh, Tyler? What's going on?" Sam said.

"Nothing." She turned on the TV. "Tyler, please! Open the door! They're gonna kill me!" Tyler looked at the brothers, raising an eyebrow. They nodded and Dean opened the door. Serena stumbled back in. "So, are you going to tell us what's going on?" Tyler asked. Serena nodded.

"We were called here."


	24. Chapter 24

"We were called here." A short silence fell, because of the revering tone of Serena's voice. "Called here? By whom?" Tyler asked. Serena shook her head and sighed. "I don't know. We all thought it was a fellow Nymph. But Nymphs don't kill other Nymphs." Dean sat up. "Wait, if you're a Nymph, how come you're here? I thought Nymphs were supposed to be tied to one place. A forest or a lake, or something." Sam nodded thoughtfully. That's what the legends said.

Tyler suppressed a smirk as Serene held her head up high. "We are not as backwards as the Nymphs of old. We've a way of carrying our bindings with us," she said as she reached for her necklace. The Winchesters looked at the small crystal embedded in it. It seemed filled with some kind of liquid. Water? They looked at Serena questioningly. "Water?" ventured Sam. She nodded. "Water from the lake I used to reside in. All Nymphs of my generation have these necklaces, filled with water or soil or leaves from their home. This allows us to travel wherever we choose. A genius invention, don't you think?"

"Oh come off it!" said Tyler. "Don't act like you were the one who devised those necklaces. You know full well that I came up with the idea." Serena shrugged. "Alright, credit given when credit is due. The Nymphs owe you a great deal of gratitude." "That's all I'm asking for," Tyler replied. Sam and Dean exchanged a glance. _Tyler created those necklaces?_

"But you say you have no idea who called you?" Dean asked. Serena shook her head. "No. But the calling was powerful. I've never felt anything like it." Tyler and Sam frowned. "Well, we won't find out anything by brainstorming, right now," Sam said. "So let's just hit the hay and go at this fresh tomorrow." The others agreed. Tyler and Dean stood up and started to get ready for bed, as Sam offered his bed to Serena.

She looked him deep in the eye and smiled. His cheeks flushed red as he hurried to the bathroom. Dean lifted an eyebrow, but his brother wouldn't meet his gaze. "She does that to men," Tyler said while taking off her boots. Dean looked at the back of Tyler's head and grinned. _She won't do it to me._ He gave Serena a dazzling smile and flopped down on his bed. "Night guys," he mumbled. "Night."


	25. Chapter 25

They'd risen early that morning, each going out on his or her own to look for clues. Serena had insisted on going with Sam, even after Tyler had given her a private speech about not seducing any men while they were on the road. Tyler was certain it hadn't left an impression on the Nymph. Those speeches never did. Neither did lectures. That was Serena; never listening but always pleading for help at the end.

_Tsk._ Tyler looked up from her plate of pasta. She'd had little luck in finding out anything about any supernatural being hunting Nymphs. Only humans made a sport of hunting them, and that had been in the early days. The old ways no longer applied in these modern times. _Or did they?_ There were a lot of sick people out there who happened to be able to perceive the supernatural. But why Nymphs. Relatively harmless, but for their piercing screams and love for …well…lovemaking. Hell hath no fury like a man scorned?

She focused on her pasta again, when the door to the small restaurant opened and she saw Dean entering, his eyes searching. When they settled on her, he walked towards her. "Hey," he said. "Hey. Found anything?" He nodded. "I found something, alright. But I have no idea what it means." He sat down and shifted nervously. Tyler discarded her pasta. It wasn't like Dean to be so jittery. "What did you find out?" she asked. "There's been a lot of hunters going through this area. And they all visited the bar up the road – Linny's or something. Rumor has it; it's the home base for a particular ruthless hunter, who hates all things supernatural. Good or bad."

Tyler frowned. "You're saying a hunter is calling and killing the Nymphs?" "I don't know. It seems like the work of more than one person. But it wouldn't hurt to check it out." Tyler nodded thoughtfully. This was bad. A fellow hunter going berserk and just killing everything otherworldly? She hated the thought of having to kill another human being – well…not that she could call him that if this was true – but if she had to, she wouldn't hesitate. Many of those who were killed were her friends. And Serena, although a royal pain in the ass, was her childhood friend and though she hated to admit it, one of the reasons she'd been able to live a somewhat normal life and have a somewhat normal childhood.

She sighed and looked at Dean, who was eyeing her unfinished plate of pasta. As he noticed her eyes upon him, he looked away. His stomach loudly growled and Tyler couldn't contain the chuckle that she uttered. "You can have it. I'm full anyways." Dean gratefully dragged the plate over to his side and dug in. She decided to call Sam, to see what he'd found out and if Serena was safe. But before she could even dial his number, her phone rang. She picked up and froze as she became aware of Sam's voice on the other side. But everything he said blew past her after his initial words.

"Serena disappeared."


	26. Chapter 26

"What do you mean Serena has disappeared? You were supposed to look after her, Sam!" Dean watched Tyler and Sam argue in the parking lot. He hadn't said a word since following Tyler out of the restaurant. She was in a frenzy; possibly because of what he had said to her only minutes before. A hunter killing Nymphs. He so hoped it wasn't true.

He knew that some hunters were messed up – he and Sam were to an extent – but to kill just to kill? That was evil. Nymphs hurt no one. Why anyone wanted to kill those women was beyond him. And Tyler was seriously freaking out, which wasn't like her at all. Stoic, calm and reassuring, that's what she was. Not hysterical like this. Apparently she cared more for Serena than she had let on.

"Tyler, calm down. We will find her, alright? You're not helping by acting this way," Sam tried. Tyler opened her mouth, decided not to say whatever she had wanted to say, and glared at him instead. Dean figured it was time to let Sam know what he had found out. "Sammy, there's something you need to know, before we go and look for Serena."

His younger brother turned to him with his eyebrows raised. "What?" "Rumor has it that the bar Linny's is the home base for a particular cruel hunter, who hates all things supernatural. And many hunters have been going out of their way to visit that bar." Sam's brow furrowed. "You're not implying what I think you are, are you? I mean, there's no way-" "No way, Sam? Remember Gordon?" Sam's cheeks turned red.

"Wait, are you talking about Gordon Walker?" Tyler asked. "Yeah. He's dead now though." "Good. I hated that guy. Gave me the creeps." Dean nodded. Gordon had given him the creeps too. "So let's visit that bar then," Sam said. "That might not be the best thing to do right now." Both Winchesters looked at Tyler, frowning.

"I thought you'd be all over it," Dean said. "Even if you get to that place, do you really expect them to answer your questions nicely? If they did kill all of those Nymphs, they will probably be hostile towards you guys and you'll get nowhere." Sam could see the logic in that. But what else were they supposed to do? He repeated the question out loud. "We go about looking for abandoned places again. We found Serena and the other girl in one, we might find her in another."


	27. Chapter 27

Water. Water trickling down. One drop. And then another. More drops. Drops of water trickling down. It fell on her face. Her eyes were heavy. Why did it fall on her face? She was cold. The ground she was lying on was cold. And hard. And rough. She knew she was supposed to do something. Drops. Water. Cold. She knew she had to open her eyes, but they were so heavy.

She had to wake up, her mind kept telling her. But she didn't know how. Her eyes were too heavy. Her head hurt. It kept on pounding. Like someone was using a sledgehammer on her brain. More drops, more heaviness of eyelids. She shivered. Moving hurt. Everything hurt. She knew she had to force open her eyes. Wrestle those lids open. C'mon…

C'mon! That's what Tyler would say to her. C'mon Serena, get up. Get up. GET UP! Open those eyes, you fool. Drops of water fell on her face as she opened her eyes. Her sight was hazy; at first she couldn't make out anything. Then she realized there was nothing to make out. Everything was dark. Everything was black. Everything hurt.

Serena tried to move, but her legs wouldn't cooperate. And not of their own accord; heavy chains prevented her from stirring. They chafed, those chains. Her hands were free though and she moved her arms towards her feet. They were bleeding. More drops to trickle away. She wiped off her hands – not wanting to see the blood and faint – and touched the back of her head.

More thumping. She thought she was bleeding there too. She knew she should be scared, or panicked or anxious. But her mind was in turmoil and she was too confused to feel anything besides pain. She did know this wasn't good. Where was Tyler? And Sam and Dean. Sam… Hadn't she been with him to go somewhere? No, they got separated. He wasn't here. Or at least so she thought, because she couldn't actually see anything. This was bad.

She shouldn't be alone. She knew that. Tyler had told her that. She needed protecting. Protecting? Protecting from what? What had happened? Footsteps sounded in the darkness and she stilled herself. Who was that? Who would come for her? The footsteps got closer to her location and she strained to see. To see anything. When the muddied boots came into view, she gasped. As she looking up and saw the person standing in front of her, all that she had forgotten came flashing back.

And when he reached for her, all she could do was pray Tyler would find her in time.


	28. Chapter 28

They had split up to search for Serena and Tyler was getting more anxious by the minute. She knew that time was on their side – the people who took the Nymphs would take their time torturing – but she took no pleasure in that thought. She had half a mind to just walk into Linny's and demand answers, but she knew that would prove to be a fruitless effort. Not to mention a waste of time.

So she sucked in her breath and searched abandoned hovel after abandoned hovel, ignoring the nervous knotting of her stomach. Panic wouldn't help Serena in any way. And she knew that she needed all of her concentration to find her friend. Serena had been there for her whenever the strain of raising six kids proved too heavy. She'd taken some of the load off at times. Serena'd understood the pain and sorrow Tyler succumbed to silently without her having to say a word to the Nymph.

As much as she hated to admit it, Serena was her one and only best friend. Without her….Tyler didn't know what she'd do without her. _I can't lose her. Not after -_ She shook her head violently and focused on her surroundings. Another abandoned warehouse that was really abandoned. This was taking far too long. She fought down her rising fear and turned to walk to her truck.

* * *

><p>Sam and Dean had found each other again amidst the search for Serena as they both made their way to another old and dirty site. "Anything?" Sam asked. Dean shook his head. He could see the guilt his younger brother was fighting. Even though it wasn't his fault, he felt like he lost Serena on his watch. And Tyler's tirade – although fueled by fear and anxiety – had done nothing to help. She must have been really upset and Dean suspected it wasn't all because of Serena's capture.<p>

The thought of potentially losing someone, after losing her siblings not too long ago, was screwing with her mind and her emotions. Dean knew what it was like to be both a sibling and a parent at the same time and how strong those bonds could be. While Sam had always rebelled against him, Tyler's family seemed to have welcomed that arrangement.

"I can't believe I just let her slip through my fingers," he heard Sam say. He looked up. "It wasn't your fault." He knew his brother wasn't convinced. "Let's just do this, okay, Sammy?" Sam nodded and they brandished their guns and walked forward quietly. The door was locked and Sam put his ear to it, to listen to any sounds from inside while Dean picked the lock. He didn't hear anything but couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. He looked Dean in the eye and signaled he was ready to go. They slipped into the warehouse.

It was silent but for the sound of water dripping. The two brothers moved swiftly and quietly, covering as much ground as they could without throwing caution in the wind. A sob came from their right and they swirled around. But there was no one there but Serena. She was covered in bruises, but luckily they didn't see any wounds or blood, besides the blood that was trickling out of a minor head wound. They rushed to her.

She fought them a while, before they'd finally gotten her to recognize them as friends. "Serena, it's us. Calm down. We're going to get you out of here," Sam said as Dean picked the locks of the chains she was bound with. When the chains dropped away, Sam cradled her to carry her away and the Nymph threw her arms around him, crying. They quickly moved out, Dean in the front, his sawed-off reacting to every sound – real or imagined. They hadn't seen anyone else when they went in and saw no one when they went out. Whoever did this to Serena was long gone.

* * *

><p>Tyler was sitting in her truck, watching Linny's close. The owner waved his customers – or fellow hunters – goodbye and went inside. He was a handsome man, with brown locks and brown eyes. He was built like a high school jock even though he was obviously a lot older than a high school kid. He could've been a model and she found herself wondering why he'd become a hunter. Her eyes narrowed. It didn't matter. If what Dean had told her this morning was true, he didn't deserve her considerations.<p>

Her phone vibrated and she checked the caller ID. Dean. She picked up. "Did you find her?"

"Yeah. We got her."

"She alright?"

"Badly beaten and bruised. No internal injuries, I think."

"Good."

"Tyler?"

"Yeah?"

"Where are you, right now?"

She stopped herself from telling the truth. The concern in Dean's voice was evident.

"On the road. I was going to visit another warehouse. So…who did this to her?"

A long pause.

"Dean? You still there?"

"It was the guy from Linny's. With another couple of hunters. But according to Serena, those guys weren't really into it. Sam guesses they were afraid of him."

"What does he look like?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"So I can punch his lights out if I ever see him on the street." It wasn't a complete lie, she told herself.

"Brown hair, brown eyes. Apparently he's quite good looking."

"You don't say…Well, I'm on my way back, so please take care of her for me. I care about her a lot."

"Will do. And Tyler?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever you think of doing, don't."

With that warning resounding in her mind, she broke off the call and threw her phone on the passenger's seat. For a moment she contemplated leaving and driving back, like she said she'd do. But rage had taken hold of her and she got out of the car.

The sound of the door opening and her entering the bar made the guy turn. "We're closed," he said with a nod to his sign. She would have believed that he wanted her gone, if his eyes hadn't wandered all over her body. "You the owner?" His eyes narrowed. "Yeah, I'm Cal. Who are you?" Tyler smiled and watched contently as he smiled back, his eyes sparkling.

"I'm a hunter." He was taken aback by that remark and was on his guard immediately. "I heard you and some of my friends had a little fun the other day and I was hoping to join in." He frowned. "Why? What have you got against supernatural creatures?" Tyler grabbed one of the pool cues and began to prepare for a new game. As she bent over to reach for some of the balls, she made sure her shirt lifted a bit, showing him a bit of skin.

He was interested, she could tell. "What's not to hate about those foul creatures? They're abominations, monsters. They should all be exterminated." She watched him grab another pool cue. _Way to condemn not just some of your friends, but part of yourself too._ The disgust on her face was real, though she was thinking of him and not Serena. But Cal didn't know that. He grinned. "I might be inclined to let you join. It's all good fun." Tyler raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"Oh yeah. We just caught a fine piece of tail this morning." Tyler fought to control her rage and showed nothing but interest. Cal puffed himself up as he continued: "A water Nymph. She struggled a bit, but these fists quickly beat her into submission." Tyler faked a laugh. "No doubt she deserved it." Cal was enjoying the game – both the pool and the reeling in of what he thought was a willing hunter.

"She will get what she deserves. A fine ass like that…I can't let that go to waste." He checked her out as she leaned in to shoot. Some of the repulsion Tyler was feeling was obviously leaking from her face. "What? You got a problem with that?" he asked. Tyler repositioned herself a bit and replied: "Yeah, I've got a problem with that." Before he knew what happened, she shot the white ball. Right into his face.

He went down. As he scrambled to get up, she beat him down with her pool cue. Cal tried to get up again. But Tyler wouldn't let him. Now it was time for her to beat _him_ into submission. Between blows she spoke. "She. Was. My. Friend." When she finally stood, Cal was sprawled on the floor, trying to shield himself from the blows. Tyler stood on his one remaining good hand and heard the breaking of bones before she squatted.

"Now. I'm going to leave you with a reminder," she said as she took out her knife. The fear in Cal's eyes didn't move her one bit. "I won't do it again. Please." But all Tyler felt was apathy. "If I ever so much as see you again, I will kill you. Understand?" He nodded swiftly. She leaned into him, bringing her face close to him. The stench of fear filled her nostrils. She looked him in the eye and smiled her most innocent smile. When that smile turned into a devilish grin, Cal lost control of his bladder.

"Such a pretty face," she cooed as she caressed his face with her knife. "I can't let that go to waste." With those words she jammed her knife into his left eye and twisted hard. His scream, haunting and filled with pain though it was, didn't so much as rattle her. She calmly continued to cut out his eye and as he passed out, she ripped it out its socket and flung it to the floor. Dispassionately, she stepped on it on her way out. She left him there, in a puddle of his blood and urine.

* * *

><p>Sam and Dean were pacing the room, waiting for Tyler to come back. When Dean had told Serena of his suspicion that Tyler was going after the owner of Linny's, two expressions flitted across Serena's face, before she regained her composure. One of the two was worry. The other one, he wasn't too sure about. Serena was sitting near the window, staring outside. He had a bad feeling about this.<p>

Sam was watching Serena when she suddenly stirred. "She's back. Seems like she had some trouble. Both Winchesters ran for the window. Tyler was pushing her truck forward, covered in dirt and mud. Car trouble? She saw them looking and waited for them to open the door. "Gonna just stand there and watch me?" she asked. Sam hurried to help her push the truck into the parking lot. "What happened?"

"Damn engine suddenly stopped, that's what happened. And my cell's battery died." Tyler said as they walked inside. "How inconvenient," Serena said. The women stood across each other, arms crossed. Tyler's face softened and she spread her arms. Serena rushed in to hug her. For a moment there was a silence. Then Serena spoke. "Sam said you were going out of your mind with worry." Tyler gently punched her shoulder. "You wish." Serena looked her in the eye. _What did you do?_ She could read that question clearly enough. _It's been taken care of_.

For a moment there she thought Serena had actually caught the meaning of that look, but the Nymph turned away too quickly for her to be sure. "Let's just go get some shut-eye," Serena said. The boys were quick to agree, though Tyler noticed Dean glancing her way. But she wasn't going to talk.

The next morning they said goodbye to Serena, who had some of her nearby Nymph friends to pick her up. She hugged all of them and took Tyler by the hand, leading her away. "What?" Tyler asked. Serena looked deep in her eyes. "You're not going to kiss me, are you?" Tyler said. Serena smiled and handed her a USB-stick. "I've been meaning to give you this for a long time." Tyler took it. "What is it?" "Something that'll make you happy. You should only watch it when you feel like you can't go on any more." Tyler frowned.

"And I'm also taking this," Serena showed Tyler her bottle of pills. Before Tyler could swipe them, she put them in her pocket. "You don't need these, Ty. Nor that watch." Tyler covered her watch with her hand before extending it. "Give me back my pills, 'Rena. You don't get to make that decision." "I'm making it for you. And if I could, I'd take the watch too. You know what to do to make the nightmares stop."

"And lose whatever innocence I have left? No thank you." Serena cocked her head. "Ty, we both know you lost whatever innocence you had yesterday." Before Tyler could protest, Serena held up her hand to silence her. "Look. I'm not mad at you. Whatever you did, he had it coming. But as long as you keep hanging on to this distorted image of yourself, the struggle is never going to be over. Accept who you are. What you are. It will make it easier."

Tyler snorted. "Easier? That's what you call it? Give me a break, Serena. You have no idea what it's like. You have no idea of the things I have had to face, to …do." "Maybe not. But I know it's eating you up inside. And that isn't healthy. Call him, Tyler. You know he would do almost anything for you." Tyler looked away. "I can't." "He's your family, Tyler." "I know that! I just can't. If I let him do it, I don't think I'll like what I see in the mirror."

Serena's eyes filled with tears and she hugged her friend fiercely. "If only you could see what I see. Then you wouldn't fear your own reflection." Tyler said nothing as the Nymph walked away, fiddling with her watch. Then she turned to walk back to the Winchesters.


	29. Chapter 29

I haven't had any reviews, comments or messages in a couple of months now, so I have no idea if anyone is still reading my chapters…I hope for some kind of 'sign of life', so I know there are still readers.

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><p>Tyler had been sitting quietly in the back of the impala for most of the journey. Her truck wasn't starting, not even Dean could get it to start. They'd decided to abandon it, as old as it was, and had gotten their stuff from the motel. Now, they were driving. But without a destination. Sam was reading the paper in search of a hunt and Tyler was doing the same on her laptop. Dean had tried to spark up some kind of conversation, but she hadn't responded.<p>

Sam put away the paper and sighed. "Anything?" Dean asked. "Nah. Nothing." He looked back to Tyler, who was staring intently at the screen. She had been doing so for a few minutes. "Tyler?" She didn't respond. "Tyler!" She looked up, startled. "What?" Both brothers frowned. It wasn't like her to be so absent-minded.

"Did you find anything?" She shrugged. "Maybe. Give me a few seconds." Another silence fell. She began fiddling with her watch and upon seeing that, Sam decided to finally ask about it. "So what's it about that watch?" he asked. Tyler frowned, but he could've sworn he'd seen shock in her eyes before she masked it.

"It's just a watch." "Never saw anything like it," Sam pressed. "Made it myself." He sensed he wasn't going to get any more out of her, so he turned back in his seat. Dean had been following the exchange carefully. There was something off about her. She should've been relieved that her friend was saved, but she acted like she had just received a big weight on her shoulders.

"Oh, this is definitely a job. Demon activity, in Las Vegas."

_So Las Vegas it is._


	30. Chapter 30

Las Vegas. The city of gambling. And they'd come here on a gamble. Tyler had said there'd been some demon activity in the past week, but since they'd arrived three days ago, they'd found squat. Sam and Dean were sharing a room while Tyler had paid for a single of her own. Dean didn't know why, but he could feel her slowly separating herself from them. And he wasn't pleased with that. When they drove home, the silence in the Impala had almost suffocated him. Sam wasn't comfortable either.

Tyler had wished them a good night and was about to enter her room, when Dean caught her by the arm. She turned back, her face betraying no emotion whatsoever. "You okay?" he asked her. A flicker of annoyance showed on her face a moment, then it passed. "Yeah. Just not used to hunting full-time." She turned to walk away again, but he held on. "That's not all, is it?" he said.

Now the annoyance did show clearly. "Yes, it is. I'm just tired, that's all. I'd appreciate it if you could let go." The tone of her voice made him let go immediately, so unkind did she sound. Her facial expression softened as she saw the hurt on his face. "I'm sorry. I'm just really tired," she said, "I'll be fine tomorrow." Dean nodded thoughtfully, but as she turned away, his eyes tightened. Just tired? Yeah right.

Sam had been watching the situation unfold from the doorway from their room and frowned as his big brother walked past him. "What's going on with her?" he asked Dean. Dean shrugged. "Says she's just tired. Don't believe her. I bet it has something to do with Serena and the conversation they had out of earshot." Sam agreed.

"What do you think she said to Tyler?" Dean frowned angrily. "How should I know?" Sam said nothing as he sat down on the bed. He switched on the TV and waited for his brother's bad mood to evaporate. Dean sighed inwardly. All of them had been quite irritable these past few days. He hoped it would all be better in the morning.

Tyler was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling. In truth, she wasn't fine. She wasn't fine at all. It wasn't just the conversation she'd had with Serena, though that was a big part of it, but also her anxiety over the whole Castiel situation. Purgatory. He was in freaking purgatory! And it would be up to her to get him out. She couldn't ask neither Sam nor Dean to do this and quite frankly, she wasn't going to tell them either. It could end badly.

She might not be able to get the angel back. She might not be able to get back herself. Sure, her heritage would help her in a way – or so she hoped – but that didn't make the task she'd set for herself any easier. But that was the way to go. She was the only one who had any chance of making it out alive and with Castiel.

She didn't know why, but she felt she owed the Winchesters to try. She felt she owed Castiel to try. If anything, she could relate to the angel and wanted to extend a helping hand. Tyler sighed and sat up, grabbing her phone. She dialed the number as she picked up her stuff and packed her bags.

As she got on the midnight bus, after leaving a note for the Winchesters, she heard the other person picking up the phone. "Hey Bobby, I'm on my way to Missouri. I'll meet you there. We do this, tonight."


	31. Chapter 31

As she got off at the bus stop, the big frame of Missouri was a welcome sight. She smiled at Tyler, before engulfing her in a bear hug. "Well, come in child. We have a lot to do tonight," she said as she led Tyler to her house. Inside, Bobby was waiting for them, a glass filled till its rim with whiskey. He didn't say anything, but nodded at her. Tyler took a deep breath. This was it. Tonight, she would enter Purgatory to find the angel. Whether they would survive and come back, she didn't know.

"Lie down," Missouri said as she ushered Tyler and Bobby into the bedroom. Tyler did as she was told, after taking off her jacket and putting down her bags. Bobby sat down in a chair close to the wall. "Are you sure about this, Tyler?" he asked. Tyler thought about it for a while. Was she ready? This could turn into a suicide mission very quickly. But for some reason, the thought of the angel Castiel being all alone in Purgatory, home of monsters, didn't sit well with her. If she was in there, she would want someone to get her out.

To save her. So that was what she would do. Save him. If she could. "I'm sure." Bobby took a swig of his whiskey and remained quiet. He had tried to talk her out of it many times. Missouri too. Tyler was too headstrong to be swayed now that the time had come. He wasn't a man who prayed but for her he sent a short prayer into space, hoping it would reach the Heavens and maybe even God himself, wherever he was.

Missouri came back from the kitchen, with a glass of a foul-smelling drink and sat down at the foot of the bed. "Now, Tyler, what we're going to do is simple. You'll drink this poison, which will not kill you, but it will slow your heart, leaving you in a near death state. I will place protective amulets around you, to guide you as your soul dream walks into Purgatory. After that, you are on your own. Find Castiel if you can, and hold on to your spirit. With his grace, you are able to open a portal to take both of you back; his vessel too."

Tyler nodded. "I have dream walked before, unwillingly and unconsciously, but I know the drill. But will he be able to see me? I mean, it's only my spirit." Missouri shrugged. "I don't know, child. Perhaps. But he will be able to hear you, and that might be enough." Bobby grumbled and said nothing. "What if I can't find him? How do I get back?"

"I will give you a week to find Castiel and bring him back. If you aren't back by then, I will try to pull out your soul, if I can. Honestly, I don't know if I can." Tyler sighed. "Well, there's nothing for it. Either I get out, or I don't. I've made my choice, so give me that stinking glass. I hope it tastes good." With those words, she threw back the contents of the glass and lay back in a comfortable position. Her world turned black right after.


	32. Chapter 32

Tyler's eyes opened as quickly as if she was wakened from a nightmare. A dark cloudy sky greeted her. She rolled to her side silently. Trees. Trees all around her. This was Purgatory? Didn't look that scary to her. Slowly she stood, looking around. It was quiet. Too quiet. Where were the sounds of nature? The whisper of the wind through the leaves? The birds singing? The crunching of dirt beneath the paws of the fox or badger?

She raised a hand to wipe her face, when she realized she was looking right through it. There were no hands. She looked down. No feet either. Just a slender shimmering outline. _Am I invisible? _Missouri had told her she didn't know if she could be seen. Tyler flexed her limbs. They didn't feel any different. She sighed. So. How to find the angel? _Perhaps I should find out where the hell I am first._

_Huh? _She could've sworn she had said that sentence out loud, but for some reason it felt like she was thinking it. Didn't Missouri promise that Castiel would be able to hear her? If her speech was somehow impaired…then this mission would turn out to be a lot more difficult than she expected. A sudden sound of rushing feet found its way to her. She turned to the right.

Someone was coming. Fast_. I need to find someplace to hide!_ Tyler duck behind some bushes and hoped no one would notice her. They might find a shimmering silhouette strange around here. Wherever here was. Four men rushed past the bushes, one in hot pursuit. The four turned to fight and as they opened their mouths and showed their fangs in defiance, Tyler saw them for what they were. Vampires. _Vampires!_ And no more difficult to see than everything else around her. So it was probably a safe bet to say she was the only one not here with body and soul.

"Don't do this, man. It's four to one. You can't win," one of the vampires said to the other one who'd been chasing them. "You belonged to the nest, to my creator. I will hunt down every single one of you," the pursuer said. He whipped out an ugly looking blade. The other vampires encircled him. Tyler had a bad feeling about it and figured she had to get out of there. But for some reason, she stayed rooted. Perhaps it was the sight of one against many, but anger bubbled in her stomach. She had to help him.


	33. Chapter 33

Dean knocked on Tyler's motel room door, expecting her to open it quickly, but to his surprise there was no answer. Was she sleeping? But Tyler didn't sleep; at least that's what she told them. He knocked again, now also calling her name. Once again, no answer. What was going on? Did it have to do with her mood yesterday? Was she ignoring them?

Sam walked out into the hall, watching his brother nearly breaking down the door. "Dean, what are you doing?" Dean let go off the door. "Tyler's not answering." He threw his hands up in the air, annoyed with the situation. Sam frowned.

"Isn't she just outside? To do some shopping or something?" Dean shrugged. "Dunno." Sam fished in his pocket and smiled as he found what he was looking for. Bobby pins. "Let's see what's inside, shall we?" he asked his brother. Dean grinned. If she was in there, Tyler would get a surprise.

Three minutes later they had read and reread the note Tyler had left for them. Purgatory? PURGATORY? Dean was pacing to and fro. "Why didn't she tell us? Why did she go after Castiel on her own, into freaking Purgatory?" he bellowed. Sam had no answer. He was still struggling with the concept of purgatory as a real place and Castiel being marooned there.

Dean rushed out of the room, Sam following on his heels. "We have to go now. Maybe we can still stop her," he said. But Sam wasn't so sure. He had a feeling things would take a turn for the worst. After all: it was Purgatory.


	34. Chapter 34

The vampires looked at each other for a long time - for such a long time that Tyler felt like jumping up and shouting "BOO!" just to see if they would move – when they suddenly attacked the one that stood alone. His blade separated the head of the first one, but the second one cannoned into him, throwing him off his feet. The other two pinned his legs to the floor with evil-looking knives and laughed as he struggled.

"Oh Benny, why did you try this? You knew you couldn't kill all of us," one of the two holding his legs said. "I will always try to kill you blood-sucking children of evil," the vampire named Benny replied. This earned him a kick in the stomach from the one standing over him. "That's not how you talk about your fellow vampires, Benny. You're one of us." He leaned in close, his knife drawing blood. "No! I drink blood, not people. I don't kill for fun," Benny exclaimed.

"And that's why we killed you in the first place, going all soft on us. You are a traitor to your kind." Unbeknownst to the vampires, Tyler had gotten up and was crawling nearer, using the bushes around them as cover. She dislodged a big rock and weighed it in her hand. She appraised the situation, waited for the opportune moment to arrive. And when the vampires ripped out the knives from Benny's legs, she surged up and threw the rock at the closest one.

He went down with a scream and the other two looked around surprised but not yet unguarded. But that gave Benny just enough time to get up and swing his blade, beheading the one who had stabbed him. The one who went down got up and called out to his friend to join him across Benny, his other friend complied and promptly sprawled over Tyler, who had seen a chance for some mischief and had crouched down nearby.

As the vampire fell, Tyler rolled away, and Benny charged towards them with his blade out and swinging. He chopped off the right arm of the fallen one and attacked the other. As he matched blades with that vampire, the fallen vampire had gotten up, holding what was left of his shoulder. Tyler was too far away to do anything and Benny hadn't seen the danger. So she did the only thing she could do. Scream.

_Watch out! _For a moment, it seemed like she had only thought the sentence instead of screaming it, but then Benny reacted and swung his blade, backhanding it into the face of the vampire who had been meaning to sneak up behind him. Then he finished the last one, put away his blade and stood, panting. His eyes went this way and that, obviously searching for whoever had warned him.

Tyler walked towards him as he shouted: "Where are you?" _I'm over here._ "Where?" _Here, in front of you. Can't you see me waving?"_ Benny looked about, but all he saw was a shimmering next to him. "I can't see you." _But apparently you can hear me. That's more than enough isn't it? Wait, here…let me just…_ Benny's eyes widened as letters appeared in the soil he was standing on. They spelled out friend. "You're supposed to be my friend?" _Well, I did save you._ "You didn't do anything!" _What? I threw that rock that smashed in that one vampire's face! I made that other dude trip and I shouted a warning! You ungrateful son of a- _"Okay, okay!"

Benny stared at the shimmering and wondered if he should ask the question that was on his mind. Was his 'friend' a man or a woman? The voice sounded distorted so he couldn't tell. But was it important enough? "I have no friends." _Would you like one?_ "What's it to you?" _Geez man, I'm extending a hand of friendship, no need to be mean about it. _"Well, I'm sorry. I'm not used to talking to air!" _I'm not air! I'm just…not here. _"Care to explain that, 'friend'?" _Not if you're going to be all sarcastic about it! Ta ta._

A silence fell and the shimmering suddenly seemed to have vanished. Benny looked around for it but didn't see anything. "Are you gone?" The silence continued. "Seriously?" Benny said, more to himself. _I'm still here. I just wanted to see what you'd do. _Benny jumped. "Why can't I see you?" he asked. _Because I'm not here. Permanently. _"Purgatory is forever. You don't get out of here." _I have it on good authority I will. Because I'm only half here. _"What are you talking about?" _Never mind. Say…you know where I could find the angel? _

"The angel? Angels go to limbo, not purgatory." _Now don't play games with me, Benny. You and I both know there's an angel here and he's not really supposed to. _"And you've come to bring him back?" _Yeah. And if you're nice to me, I might take you too. _"Thanks." _You're welcome. _"No, I mean thanks for saving me. I didn't really thank you earlier." _Oh…well, the same answer applies. So, are you gonna show me where I can find the angel or what? _"Will you really take me back to Earth?" _If it is in my power to do so, I will, how about that? _

"Why? Why would you do this for an evil vampire?" _You're a vampire alright, and maybe a little ungrateful, but you're not evil. Trust me, I know evil when I see it. _"Takes one to know one?" Benny grinned. _…Not funny dude. _"Sorry. It's a deal: I help you find the angel, you take me back to Earth." _And you continue not drinking people. _"Of course."


	35. Chapter 35

Sam and Dean nearly threw themselves at Missouri's door, knocking frantically and screaming their lungs out demanding to see Tyler. They had driven through the night, taking turns at the wheel to make sure they both got a bit of sleep. Finally, their knocking was answered by the grumpy face of Bobby. "Bobby, where is she?" Before he could answer, they pushed their way in.

Missouri came in from the kitchen, shushing the guys. "Don't you dare raise your voices in my house," she said quietly, though they could see that she was angry, by the flaming of her eyes. Sam made to reply, but she silenced him with a quick gesture. "Into the kitchen," she said, "and don't you come back until you've calmed down." She left them to their own devices then, and Bobby too looked pointedly in the kitchen's direction.

The brothers sighed and went into the kitchen, counting to ten slowly, feeling their anger and fear slowly subside. After all, if Tyler was in danger Bobby and Missouri wouldn't be so calm, would they? Perhaps she didn't go to Purgatory after all. Maybe she just wanted to get away from them for a while. Even though it hurt that she wouldn't just tell them that, it was something they could understand. Better have her be distant then in godforsaken Purgatory.

Bobby came back into the kitchen and asked, "Calmed down now?" They nodded. "So where's Tyler?" Dean asked. Bobby's brow furrowed, but he said nothing as he led them upstairs. Sam and Dean looked at each other with their eyebrows raised, but neither one had any idea why they were going to Missouri's bedroom. But the sight that struck them changed their demeanor in a heartbeat and they couldn't keep themselves from rushing into the room with a shout.

There she lay, on the bed, her breathing shallow and ragged and her face devoid of any color. Her forehead was sweaty and no matter how many times Missouri wiped the drops away, the sweating wouldn't stop. "What happened?" Dean shouted. Bobby and Missouri shushed him again, violently this time. "Her soul is roaming Purgatory as we speak, and any loud sounds may wake her up or worse: snap the connection between her soul and her body for good," Missouri said.

"But why?" Sam whispered. "Why would she do this? And how is she doing it in the first place? I thought humans weren't allowed in Purgatory." Bobby and Missouri glanced at each other, but elected to stay silent. "And how did you get her soul there without the body?" Dean asked. "It's a lot like dream walking," said Bobby. "And we already knew she would have an affinity for that."

"What do you mean?" But Bobby shook his head. "Let's take all this talk downstairs." As the four of them left the room together, Dean looked back at the unconscious form of his friend. He had a feeling that she was in more danger than he could imagine. Than all of them could imagine.


	36. Chapter 36

Benny crouched near the site, spying on the leviathans going about their business. The angel was bound to a stake, his wings broken. "Is that the angel you were talking about?" he whispered to where he assumed his 'friend' would be. _I guess. How many angels are there in purgatory?_ "Just the one." _Then you just asked me a stupid question didn't you? _Benny said nothing as he watched the suited leviathans walking about.

_What do you think they want with him?_ "Maybe steal his grace? I heard angel's grace is very useful. And he doesn't seem all that angelic any more." Well that could certainly be a problem, thought Tyler. An angel without his grace would be human-ish. And what could be worse than that for a former angel? If she were one, she wouldn't want to become a human. That's like going from the top of the food chain to rock bottom. "What do you want to do?" Benny whispered. _Don't know yet. Let's just observe them first. Be better to snatch him away during the night anyway._

They carefully retreated into a high bush, keeping their eyes trained on the bruised vessel that was Castiel. Or so they thought. _He doesn't look like much out here. I wonder why they'd bring his vessel._ "Vessel? You mean that's not what he really looks like?" _Wait, can't you see his true form? It's huge! And quite beautiful really…The only physical manifestations of his true form are his wings. The rest isn't him really, just a meat suit. _"Are you saying he possesses someone right now?" _Someone's body yeah. The person is long gone. Probably off to heaven. _"I wonder what beef those creeps have with the angel. Do you know?"_ He kinda sucked up all their souls and then released them back in here or something. _"Figures they'd be angry. I'd be angry too."

A silence fell between the two as they waited for nightfall. When it came, Tyler told Benny to stay back, while she snuck towards the angel. The vampire didn't mind staying with all the leviathans creeping about. Tyler tiptoed around the sentries one by one, holding her breath. No one noticed. Then she found herself face to face with the angel and gasped softly. He was looking right at her. He could see her, she could feel it. There was surprise on his face and then recognition. After that, some kind of resignation settled on the angel's face.

"Are you here to kill me?" he asked softly. She was surprised by his low growling voice – she hadn't expected an angel to sound like that. _No. Why would you think that?_ "Because of your coming. It's not often I get visited by a-" _SHHHHH, someone's coming over. _A leviathan stepped towards Castiel and hissed. Castiel withdrew within himself. The leviathan stepped away, happy about his effect on Castiel. _I'm not here to kill you. I don't even think I could if I was here completely. I'm not….what you think I am. _"Then what are you?" _A friend. Someone from Earth who has been listening to the lamenting of the Winchesters and who wants to help._ "Are you saying-" _Yes Castiel. I've come to rescue you._


	37. Chapter 37

"So what aren't you telling us?" Dean asked as Bobby and Missouri put the Winchesters up on the couch. Bobby swiveled round to face the brothers as he asked, "What do you mean?" Sam sighed. "Give it up, Bobby. We know there is something you are hiding from us and it has to do with Tyler and the fact that she's in Purgatory right now." Missouri went back into the kitchen to get her guests some food, leaving Bobby to answer the questions by himself. _Convenient that._

"Tyler is in Purgatory, because she wanted to save Castiel," he said. "And we let her do it because she is the only one we know of who actually has a fighting chance in there." Dean frowned. "But why, Bobby? Why would she risk herself for an angel she doesn't even know, and why is she the only one who has a fighting chance?" Bobby harrumphed. _How am I gonna explain this to those idjits without giving away what Tyler has kept hidden all her life? It's not my secret to reveal, if it ever gets revealed. _

"She wanted to help him, because she's a very empathetic person. She feels for him, guys. She wouldn't wish Purgatory on anyone, least of all an angel and a friend of Team Free Will, so to speak. She knows something about being somewhere you don't want to be." The brothers looked at each other, questioningly. "You make it sound like she knows Purgatory," Sam remarked. Bobby shook his head. "She doesn't know Purgatory, but she knows about pain. And that is a big part of Purgatory, or so I've been told by Missouri."

Missouri walked back in with a plate filled with sandwiches and put it on the salon table. She straightened and looked the brothers in the eye. "Tyler is...special. And the thing that makes her special is the reason she might be able to get Castiel and herself out of there." Dean sighed. _How is that in any way revealing?_ "You're being cryptic, Missouri." "For a reason. I cannot reveal what isn't mine to reveal. All you have to know is that Tyler is fighting for her life and the life of your friend right now. "

"Will she succeed?" Sam asked. "I mean, how much of a chance does she have, realistically." Bobby and Missouri both flinched at the word realistically. "It's about ten percent, if we account for the two of them." "TEN PERCENT?" the Winchesters cried out in unison. "And what if she brings more ...people?" Sam asked. Bobby's brow furrowed. "Why would she need to bring anyone else? Purgatory is the place where monsters go when they die. Castiel is the only good person there."

Dean shrugged Bobby's question off. "That doesn't matter. We don't know what she's dealing with over there." Missouri caught his drift and closed her eyes. "With every person she brings with, her chances of making it decrease. If she were to attempt to bring someone else back besides Castiel, well...she'd be as good as dead." Sam scowled. "Let's hope she hasn't made any friends."

Their nervous laughter did nothing to hide the anxious feeling that had started burning a hole in their guts.


	38. Chapter 38

Hey guys, I'd like to point out that I've love some reviews, because I don't know if this story is doing it for you guys. Reviews make a girl feel appreciated ;)

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><p><em>Alright, let me see if I can loosen these bindings.<em> Tyler walked to the back of the stake, looking at the chains binding him. She sighed inaudibly. This was not going to work. She wouldn't be able to break those chains. She needed keys. And that wouldn't be easy. She tiptoed back to the front and made eye contact with Castiel once again.

_I can't break the chains with my bare hands. But maybe I can find the keys that unlock them. Do you know which leviathan has them?_ Castiel looked thoughtful for a while then looked pointedly at a blonde female leviathan, who was pacing up ahead. _You sure?_ He nodded. _Hm...this is going to be tough. I think I'm going to need some help. Be right back._

Tyler skulked away, back to where Benny was waiting. "And?" he asked. _I'm going to need your help. _"What do you want me to do?"_I need a diversion. Something that will keep those minds off their valuables. _"Their valuables? What-" _Just trust me, okay? _"Fine"

Benny rose from his hiding position and let out a loud bellow. The leviathan all fixed their attention on him. And then he charged in, jumping into their midst, using his fists as weapons. Tyler cringed as one of his opponents landed a blow to his face, but when she saw Benny stop, drop and roll, she focused on the task she had set herself. _Keys. Keys. Where are those damn keys?_

She approached the blonde from behind, eyes on the keychain on her belt. Fingers as quick as lightning and then she suddenly had the keys in her hand. She mentally high-fived herself before running towards Castiel. Tyler quickly unlocked the chains and Castiel fell to his knees, as his legs weren't yet strong enough to carry his weight.

Tyler hoisted him up, noticing his laboured breathing and the way his wings just sort of_ hung_ from his back. _I'll have to reset those wings later. _Castiel tried to speak but didn't get a chance to as all the leviathan suddenly snapped their heads into their direction. _Uh oh._ She saw the hatred burning in their eyes as they looked upon the angel - as they couldn't actually see her - and saw him standing with his arm around nothing but air.

Tyler looked at Benny, who was staring in her direction, momentarily ignored by the leviathan. As they started to move towards her and Castiel, she started to edge back. Then, her voice resounded through the clearing.

_RUN BENNY, RUN!_

Benny set off, hooked his arm around the angel and, with the help of Tyler, fled into the woods, the sound of the pursuing leviathan loud in their ears.


	39. Chapter 39

"Oof!" Benny landed on his face as a Leviathan grabbed his legs while they stumbled and tumbled through the woods. He lost his grip on the angel and saw him roll down the rise, accompanied by the sound of Tyler's curses. Benny scrambled to get his feet back under him and kicked the Leviathan in the face before jumping up and sprinting down the rise himself. The angel was limping in front of him; the only indication of Tyler's presence was the sight of footprints in the mud.

Then, the footsteps suddenly stopped and an invisible hand pushed Castiel towards a picket of sturdy trees. "Benny, come here!" he heard Tyler yell and he changed direction. He saw long branches being snapped off from the trees. Spiky branches. He understood what Tyler wanted to do. "Are you sure attacking them is the best thing to do now?" he asked as he accepted one of the branches. As no answer followed, he turned to the angel who was also holding a branch.

He looked awfully weak. "Will you be alright?" Benny asked him. Castiel shrugged - more accurately would be to say he attempted to and just gave up half way. "I'm not going back with them in any case," the angel growled. Benny felt an icy finger caress his spine. The way the angel looked and sounded was a tad more animalistic he had expected. Angels were supposed to be warriors of righteousness, not like other creatures. Not...barbaric. Not...killers. He nodded at Castiel and gave him his name and Tyler's. Castiel nodded thoughtfully.

They had no time for exchanging any other pleasantries as the first few Leviathan crested the rise and began their descent. They braced their branches as they prepared to ambush the monsters. Then, stones rained down on the Leviathan. Tyler had climbed up the tallest tree after loading herself with as many stones and rocks she could find and was now throwing them at the Leviathan below.

As the Leviathan went down after being pelted with rocks, Benny and Castiel shared a relieved glance. But they knew rocks wouldn't keep them safe forever. They were proven right as the next batch of Leviathan crested the rise.


	40. Chapter 40

Dean looked at the sleeping - or unconscious - form of Tyler, keeping track of her chest moving up and down as she breathed. He had noticed her breaths becoming shallow, almost as if she was out of breath. He had noticed her taking deep breaths and even gasping at times. What was she going through, he wondered. What was happening in Purgatory?

Suddenly her head snapped to the right, a groan escaping from her lips and her arms flailed off the bed. Dean jumped up, put her arms back on the bed and felt her forehead. She was hot and sweating profusely. He took a wet cloth and dabbed at her forehead. _Hang in there, Tyler. Hang in there._

He sat back into his chair as Sam popped in to check on his brother and his friend. "How is she?" he asked. Dean shrugged. "She's fighting...something, I think. I don't know." Sam nodded in understanding and brushed some hairs out of Tyler's face. Then he looked back at his brother. "Dean, you might want to take some rest, you're looking pale."

Dean shook his head. "I'm fine, Sam. I'm just looking out for her." Sam crouched near his brother to get his attention. "I know that, but you're tired. You've been sitting here for 24 hours now. Let me watch her for a few hours while you catch up on some sleep. There's no reason for you to stay awake right now."

Dean looked at Sam, determination in his eyes. "No." Sam sighed. "Dean-" Dean shot up and grabbed his brother by the shoulders. "Sam, I said no." Sam meant to start a discussion, but was rudely interrupted by Tyler's sudden scream of pain.

Her body shook and spasms racked her body. Then she was still.


	41. Chapter 41

Tyler awoke in a dark cave, squeezed between two warm bodies. She turned her head and saw Castiel and Benny on either side, in deep slumber. Carefully, she sat up as not to wake the guys and winced as her wounds started hurting again.

They'd been lucky to fight off the main force of the leviathan for long enough to make their dashing, and daring escape. Had they not jumped in the fast-flowing river, they wouldn't have survived. Then again, she also wouldn't have the head wound, broken fingers, shredded legs and a dislocated shoulder if they hadn't jumped into that river.

Tyler shivered as she remembered drowning in the strong current, her head strangely light - she hadn't actually known about her wound until she saw her blood draining her. Slamming into that enormous boulder had dislocated her shoulder and she'd lost the two men momentarily. When she found them again, Castiel was holding on to Benny, who was holding on to a tree trunk.

Benny had been shouting her name, as she was invisible to him, and Castiel had scanned the dark water. When he saw her, he shouted for her to grab onto his hand. Tyler had lunged at his hand, grabbed it, only to almost be wrenched from his grip by some kind of water creature, who wanted her for its lunch, breaking her middle finger and pinky finger.

The creature had not let go and tried again, this time trapping her leg between its razor sharp teeth and pulling her under. Tyler had struggled, had kicked furiously, but she couldn't get it off. Then suddenly Benny was beside her, blind to her, but not the creature and fought to get it off her.

He'd obviously succeeded, although Tyler didn't remember because her world went black soon after. She hadn't even felt the teeth dislodging themselves. And now here they were, in a dark and mouldy cave. Her wounds were stitched and bound - Benny's shirt had been sacrificed to make bandages - and her fingers and shoulder were reset.

She stood, and woke Castiel. His eyes shot open immediately and focused on her. "Are you alright?" he whispered. Tyler shrugged and beckoned him as she walked towards the entrance. He joined her. "Thank you for taking care of me," she said. "Were the two of you hurt?" Castiel shook his head.

"Not really." Tyler smiled relieved. "Alright, then let's do this." She straightened and went to stand behind the angel, her hands on his left wing. He tried to turn, but she pushed him back. "What are you doing?" he asked nervously. "Your wings need to be snapped back into their right position, if you ever want them to heal properly," she replied. "On three, alright?" Castiel nodded and gritted his teeth.

"One." Tyler wrenched the left wing, tearing a wail from the angel, who in his pain lurched away from her, whacking her in the head with his wing. Tyler stumbled with a cry, tottered, tried to straighten and passed out again.


	42. Chapter 42

Hey guys, how've you been? Sorry you had to wait so long for this chapter, but I've been really busy lately. Anyways, reviews make a girl feel appreciated.

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><p>"Her pulse is weak," Missouri said as she took her fingers off Tyler's throat and wiped Tyler's sweaty brow with a cold and wet cloth. Dean, Sam and Bobby straightened, brows furrowed in worry. Sam glanced at his older brother, whose concern was plainly written on his face. After Tyler had cried out in her comatose state, both Winchesters had freaked out considerably and it took Bobby stomping upstairs to ask them to turn it down for them to calm down.<p>

He'd taken one quick look at the still form of Tyler and rushed downstairs again, to get Missouri. Missouri had said nothing as she looked over Tyler, until now. "At least she still has a pulse," Bobby mumbled to himself. Missouri shot him an angry look and he cowered under the heat of it.

"Might I remind you that it was Tyler's idea and her choice to go dream walking into Purgatory? She came to me with this proposition, Bobby. I just complied with her wishes," Missouri said. Bobby sighed. "I know. I just...how long has she been in there by now?" Missouri looked pensive for a moment, then she replied, "Three days."

"Do you think she's found him?" Sam asked, glancing once again at Dean, who focused all of his attention on the comatose form of Tyler. "No clue," Missouri said. She wiped some wayward hairs out of Tyler's face, when suddenly she physically recoiled as if burned.

"What? What is it?" Dean asked. Missouri cradled her left hand in her right and was breathing heavily. "This is bad," she said. "Tyler's soul is supposed to be tethered to her body, so she can return to us here and bring Castiel with her. But the tether is growing weaker as we speak."

"What does that mean?" asked Bobby. "It means her soul is in danger of manifesting itself permanently in Purgatory. The looser the connection to her body gets, the more 'real' she'll become in there. Which means that if she takes too long, she'll become trapped in Purgatory. And because she'll no longer be there just in spirit, it means she can actually die there."

The three men bombarded her with questions, but Missouri waved them away and told them she needed to do some more research before she could even begin to understand all of the ramifications. Sam and Bobby accompanied her downstairs, claiming they too would help with the research. Dean stayed upstairs, watching over Tyler.

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><p>Dean awoke with a start, sitting up in his chair, looking around. His eye briefly fell on the plate Sam had brought up before he apparently fell asleep, then swept the room. Nothing. He didn't know what woke him, but he figured it was a good time as any to check on Tyler again. She was still lying on her back, though her arm had moved off the bed, her large watch seemingly pulling it towards the ground.<p>

Dean swept up her arm, noticed the weight of the watch and made up his mind. He unclipped the watch and moved to take it off her arm, when he detected a small puncture on the inside of her wrist. He caressed it with his finger, frowned, then looked back at the watch. A small metal tack was sticking out of it, but it didn't look like the watch was broken in any way. The tack was built in. "What the...?"

Dean touched the tack and almost yelped as a tiny electric current zapped him. He threw down the watch on the bed and looked hard at Tyler. "What the hell are you into?" he whispered, more to himself than to her.


End file.
